


We’ll walk together towards dark unseen (and our hearts will be our guiding key)

by Lady_Mystra



Category: Kingdom Hearts (Video Games), Twisted-Wonderland (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Angst and Feels, Everyone Has Issues, Everyone loves Sora, Fluff, Friendship, Gen, Multi, Oblivious Sora (Kingdom Hearts), Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Other Ships Not Mentioned in Tags, Polyamory more like TWamory, Sora Is a Ray of Sunshine (Kingdom Hearts), Tags Are Hard, or at least smarter than in the games, smart Sora
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-01
Updated: 2021-02-21
Packaged: 2021-03-10 06:26:42
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 12
Words: 58,276
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27819718
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lady_Mystra/pseuds/Lady_Mystra
Summary: Sora doesn’t really know how he ended up in this prestigious magic school. One minute he’s celebrating with his friends, the next he finds himself waking up in a coffin. The memories of how he got there are distant, just beyond reach. But at least he knows his friends are okay, so he’ll try to enjoy his stay, while looking for a way to go home. Wait, why do they have statues of known villains here? And WHAT happens to a magician who uses to much magic?
Relationships: Sora (Kingdom Hearts) & Epel Felmier (Twisted Wonderland), Sora (Kingdom Hearts) & Everyone, Sora (Kingdom Hearts) & Jack Howl (Twisted Wonderland), Sora (kingdom hearts) & Grim (twisted wonderland)
Comments: 40
Kudos: 260





	1. Chapter 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’ve really succumbed to Twisted Wonderland these last couple of weeks. Combined with the release of Kingdom Hearts melody of memory and me finally getting the chance to finish my first play through of Kingdom Hearts III, I was really motivated to combine the two and write this fic. I also noticed there aren’t a lot of KHxTW fics yet. Beyond the Looking-Glass by WingBlade1357 was a great read and really inspired me. 
> 
> I hope I write the characters as much in character as I can, but some things will diverge from canon and therefore characters will act differently. Furthermore, (a slight spoiler for upcoming chapters, so don’t read if you don’t want to be spoiled) Sora will be friends with Ace and Deuce, but he won’t join class 1-A and will therefore also be close friends with the first years of 1-B, Epel and Jack. I’ve read many stories in which the main character always joins 1-A, whether they started of as a student or became students later on like in canon. Therefore, I wanted to try something else and I think a friendship between the three (Sora, Epel and Jack) would work out really well, since Jack reminds me slightly of Riku and Epel reminds me slightly of Kairi with a bit of Donald mixed in. 
> 
> Also a reminder that English is not my first language and I am not that experienced in writing stories in English (I have written a lot in English, but they were mainly for scientific purposes like my Master thesis, which of course is a really different writing style). I’m also working without a Beta, so if anyone is interested in helping me out, please let me know!
> 
> Title is inspired by the the original Sora theme song by Lizz Robinett.

“I’m sorry, Kairi. It was the only way...” Sora murmured softly to Kairi as his body started to dissolve. The last thing he could see before everything faded to black was the tears falling from her eyes. 

Sora drifted aimlessly in the dark nothingness. Time had slowly started to lose meaning to him in this strange, depressing place. After what seemed like ages, he saw a light coming closer. 

“Come now, show me your power. We only have a little bit of time left.” Whispered a strange voice in the dark. Faintly, Sora could make out the appearance of a hand in the light that had drawn close to him. 

“At all costs, do not let go of that hand.” Continued the strange voice. Deciding he had nothing to lose and having experienced stranger things, Sora grasped the offered hand. 

As if having sensed his decision, the light suddenly expanded and everything turned to white. While this happened, Sora started to lose consciousness. The last thing he could hear was a last whisper from the strange voice. “Good luck, child….and let your heart light your path.”

~~  
“Darn it! People are coming soon! I have to get this uniform on fast! Ah!” Was the voice Sora woke up to. 

Extremely confused, Sora looked around him. He couldn’t see a thing, but he could feel a soft fabric underneath him. Upon closer inspection, the same fabric was also above and besides him. Meaning that he was in a small space lined with fabric. Wait…..Was he in a coffin?! Fortunately, before he could further ponder on his whereabouts, he was interrupted by someone talking again.

“Grrr! The lid is too heavy. Time for……my secret move! Guwaahuhh~ There!” 

After a whooshing sound and a moment of intense heat, the lid of Sora’s coffin was blasted off. 

“Wah….What the heck happened?” Sora asked himself as he slowly took in his surroundings. Before he got far, he saw a strange grey cat with a black-and-white striped bow. However, the strangest thing about the cat was probably the electric blue flames blazing from his ears. 

“Alright! Here’s what we’re looking for.” It muttered to himself as he drew closer to sora. “Gyaa! You! Why are you awake?!”

“Hiya, Mr. cat. Could you please tell me where….” Before Sora could finish asking his question the cat interrupted him.

“Who are you calling a cat?! I am the great Grim, you know! Ah well, you human! Gimme those clothes. Or if you don’t…..I will burn you!” 

Not even giving Sora a chance to give up his clothes, Grim fired a salvo of blue flames at him. Instinctively, Sora dodged the incoming attacks and fired back his own spell.

“Stopga!” 

A clock appeared above Grim’s head counting down from 40 freezing the cat in place. 

“Sorry, Grim, but I don’t fancy getting burned or going around naked. Don’t worry this won’t harm you.” Sora apologized to the cat as he walked towards the door. “No hard feelings, I hope.” Was the last thing Sora said to Grim before he closed the door and quickly made his way as far away from the room as he could. “Aw man, I hope not everyone is so quick to attack in this place. Where even am I?....What happened?”

As Sora quickly moved through the hallways, he keeps going over this memories trying to find out how he got here. Wherever here is, anyway. He remembers going back in time to restore Kairi’s heart, but after that, it is kind of hard to recall anything. Wasn’t he on Destiny Island with Kairi, before he appeared here?....What…..happened? Sora was so lost in thought, he hadn’t noticed he wasn’t alone anymore. 

“Good evening.” A low voice startles Sora from his thoughts. 

“Oh my gosh! Sorry, I didn’t notice you there.” Sora said with a smile as he whirled around to face the newcomer. “Good evening!”

Before him stood a really, really tall teen. He was almost two heads taller than him. And he was wearing an ….uniform of sorts, consisting of a white dress-shirt beneath a green vest, a black-and-white striped tie, a black jacket and black slacks. As Sora moved his gaze up to make eye contact, he noticed the startling green color of his eyes and long black horns protruding through his long dark hair.

“Why are you here instead of at the entrance ceremony?” Asked the stranger somewhat coldly.

“Entrance…..ceremony?” Was Sora’s confused reply. He looked around him hoping his surroundings would provide an answer. However, it made him even more confused. Books were everywhere around them. Shelves were overflowing with books and books were stacked on tables and on the floor. Some of the books were even floating in the air. Was this some kind of library? 

“I’m sorry, but I don’t really know what you’re talking about. I just woke up in some coffin. I really have no idea how I got here!?”

“….You don’t know where you are?” At this the stranger looked down at you and his previously cold demeanor seemed to melt away slightly. Seeing Sora’s frantic nod, the horned stranger started to explain what kind of world Sora had woken up in.

“Child of man, you are at Night Raven College. A prestigious all-boys academy, where many magicians are sent to become powerful mages. To attend you have to be chosen and seen as worthy by the Dark Mirror. That coffin you woke up in is actually a Gate that is used to summon the chosen students to this place. Therefore, it seems likely that you are one of the chosen students as well, even if you do not remember it.” The stranger finished his explanation and looked at Sora to see if he has any more questions. 

“Thank you for explaining things to me, mister. I still don’t exactly get it and I don’t really know why I was chosen, since I don’t think I can stay. You see my friends are probably waiting for me. I had been searching for them for a long time and we finally reunited, but then I ended up here.” At the last part Sora scratched his head embarrassedly. 

“It is not know to me whether you can unenroll from this school without being expelled. However, you should bring this subject up to the headmaster after the entrance ceremony. I have my doubts he will listen before this.” 

Letting the info sink in, Sora finally thought to ask the question that had been bothering him during this conversation. “What is your name, mister?” 

Surprised colored the stranger’s face. “You….you are not aware of who I am? Really? Oh my, this is quite unusual, indeed.”

“….No? I..um…am not from around here…..Should I know who you are?” Was Sora’s cautious reply.

“My name is-….” He starts, but abruptly cuts himself off. “No, I shall stop here. Not hearing my name would be better for you. If you knew who I was, it would certainly leave a chilling impression. Feel free to call me whatever you want. Though, it might someday make me regret that decision.” The last part was muttered under his breath, but Sora was just barely able to hear it. 

“Wow, that’s an unusual request. But I gotta warn ya, I’m not that great at naming things. What about…….Mr. Horns?” Sora offered hesitantly and looked up at the stranger.

A laugh escapes the stranger’s lips, amusement visible in his eyes. “I did say that you could call me whatever you want. Such a ….creative nickname would fit that criteria, I would say.” 

“There you are!” A new voice echoes through the room. “My goodness. It’s unprecedented for a new student to leave the Gate on their own. The entrance ceremony is already under way. Let’s head to the Hall of…….Mirrors.” The newcomer trailed off as he caught sight of Mr. Horns next to you. 

The man looked surprised at seeing Sora’s new friend. Well, Sora thought he looked surprised, but it was actually quite difficult to see much of the man’s expression, since his face was concealed by a half-mask resembling a raven’s beak. However, the mask was not the only strange thing about this man. He also had thick blackbird feathers curling out from the blue-collar of his coat and he was wearing a somewhat old fashioned top hat adorned with a mirror-like charm. Additionally, he could also been seen wearing golden claw rings over his glove-clad fingers. So….he might really like ravens, was the thought that crossed Sora’s mind. 

“Mr. Dra…” Before the strange man could finish he was cut off by Mr. Horns.

“Headmaster Crowley, why don’t you escort this wayward student to the entrance ceremony.” 

At Mr. Horns intense gaze, the person, who Sora now knew to be the headmaster of this school, turned nervous. “Ah…they did not invite you again, it seems. Well, if you do not want to join us, we must be off. The ceremony will most likely be almost over.” 

As the headmaster moved to escort Sora out of the room, the teen noticed that the man was restraining a struggling Grim with some kind of…rope? Well, it didn’t seem to be hurting the cat, so Sora decided to let it be. However, the headmaster noticed his gaze. “Mmmh, as you can clearly see, I’ve caught your rebellious familiar for you. It would seem you have yet to tame this unruly beast.”

Before Sora could utter a word of protest, the headmaster ushered Sora from the room. Just as they were about to move out of earshot, Sora could hear Mr. Horns mutter that he hadn’t even asked him his name yet. 

“NAME’S SORA!” Sora shouted to his friend, startling the headmaster. However, the resulting smile on Mr. Horns face was definitely worth it. He hoped to learn his new friends name sometime as well.

~~  
“Is that all for the new student dorm assignments? Listen up, new students. Here in Heartslabyul, I am the rules. Break them and it’s off with your head.” Was spoken by a serious-looking teen with red hair, that was of similar height as Sora, but looked really small next to all the taller teens. This was the scene that the headmaster and Sora stumbled upon. However, the teens did not yet seem to notice their entrance.

“Uuugghh. The stuffy ceremony is finally over. We’re going back to the dorm. Savanaclaw, follow me.” Was said by a muscular young-man with brown skin and light-brown lion ears and a thin tail of the same color. 

“To the new students, congratulations on entering the academy. Enjoy your life here to its fullest. As the dormitory leader of Octavinelle, I will support you to the best of my ability.” Said a glasses-wearing teen with lavender, wavy hair that is styled longer on the left with the back shaved. 

“By the way, where did the Headmaster go? He flew out right in the middle of the ceremony..” Said a rather tall man with shoulder-length blonde hair with purple highlights. 

Taking this as his cue, the headmaster to decided to announce their presence. 

“I was merely looking for a wayward student.” With this he startled most of the students, since they still hadn’t noticed them.

“Ah, he’s here.” Was the redhead’s unenthusiastic response.

“I cannot believe you all. We were missing one new student, so I went to find them.” He then addressed Sora. “You are the only yet to be assigned a dormitory. I shall watch over the raccoon, step in front of the Dark mirror.”

Sora stepped in front of the mirror where a large masked face could be seen in. “State thy name” Asked the mirror.

“My name is Sora.” 

“I sense a great power from this one. The key that connects everything. They are suited for all dormitory, yet they are suited for none.” Was the cryptic reply of the Dark Mirror. Of course, this seemed to stump the headmaster. “Come again?”

“I cannot sort them in any dormitory, since they are suited for all.” The dark mirror repeated. Causing mutters to erupt for the audience. Everyone seemed just as confused as the headmaster. Noticing the reactions around him, Sora became just as confused. Hoping for an explanation, the teen turned to the headmaster. Who seemed to be muttering to himself…

“This has never happened before. In 100 years, there has not once been a student that could not be sorted. So why in the world….”

“Mghmmh…Pah!” While nobody was paying attention to him, Grim had somehow managed to set himself free. “Then I’ll take their place!” 

“Stay right here! Raccoon!” was the headmaster’s immediate reply.

Even though he had been previously captured by the Headmaster, his words did not seem to deter him. It looked like it might have even egged him on. “Unlike that dumb human, the mirror will be able to sort me into a dorm, since the great Grim will become the best magician this world has ever seen! If you need proof, I’ll show you right now!” 

Sora, already having some experience with the cat, caught on to what he was about to do. Just as the cat was about to attack, Sora tried to warn the students. “Everyone, get down!” Then, the cat shot multiple large blue fireballs all around him and into the group of students. Seeing one fireball heading right for a student close to him, he rushed in and tackled him to the floor. After checking whether the student was alright, they both got up.

“At this rate, the school will be a sea of fire! Somebody, catch that raccoon!” shouted Crowley to the students. 

“Leave the fire to me! I’ve experience putting out fires.” Sora offered and a barrier of water formed around the teen. Next, projectiles of water, which seemed to hone in on the fires, were fired from the water barrier. This way, Sora had already put out multiple fires and was quickly working towards putting out the rest. However, since Grim wasn’t stopped yet, new fires kept popping up. 

“Oh, what a great idea!” was suddenly exclaimed by the teen that Sora had rescued. “I could definitely help you out! Rest in the hot sands for an endless banquet. Now sing! Dance! Oasis maker!” 

After the teen uttered the last word and pointed a pen into the air, clouds began to form inside the room. Soon thereafter, rain began to fall and even more fires were put out. Working together, they managed to put out all the remaining fires and were able to extinguish any new fires quickly. 

“Now that the school is not in immediate risk of burning down. Could someone please catch that raccoon!” The headmaster seemed to become even more flustered.

“Hmmm? Aren’t you good at hunting? Doesn’t it look like a nice, plump snack?” The blond teen asked the lion-eared young-man. However, the young-man did not agree with the blond teen and scoffed instead. “Why me? Do it yourself.”

“Mr. Crowley, please leave it to me. I’m sure the others couldn’t stomach harassing the poor creature, so I’ll take it upon myself.” Was offered by the glasses-wearing teen instead.

“That’s Azul for you. Always trying to earn himself points.” Said the…..Tablet?

“Are you all even listening?!” It seemed that the headmaster couldn’t keep his cool anymore as he watched his students bicker. Well, he could always just do it himself, was Sora’s opinion, since he seemed perfectly able to capture him earlier. 

“If it’s just catching some stupid raccoon, can’t you do it yourself, Teach?” Well, it looked like the lion-eared man shared Sora’s opinion. 

However, the cat finally had enough of people calling him a raccoon. “How many times do I have to tell you, I’m not a raccoon! I am the Great Grim, the one who will become a great magician.”

“It certainly has moxie. Care to help me, Riddle?” Azul asked the redhead.

“I can’t overlook those who break rules.” Was Riddle’s reply. “Let’s hurry and get it.”

Both students took off after Grim and chased him around the room. While they were chasing him, the launched several water spells at him, weakening the cat and causing him to slow down. When Riddle managed to get in range, he seemed to prepare himself for a more powerful attack. 

“OFF WITH YOUR HEAD!” Was shouted by the redhead and a heart-shaped collar appeared around Grim’s neck. 

“Nygah! The heck is this?!” was frantically shouted by the cat.

Riddle walked sedately towards the squirming cat and grabbed him by the scruff. “Laws of the queen of Hearts Number 23: ‘One shall never bring a cat into a festival.’ You being a cat means you’ve broken the rule. I shall have you leave at once.”

Of course, Grim couldn’t leave it at that and scoffed. “I’m not a cat!! I’ll burn this collar right up and….E, eh? I can’t use my fire magic!” was Grim’s frantic reply at this observation. 

“Hmph! You won’t be using magic until I remove the collar. Just. Like. An. Ordinary. Cat.” Riddle said unsympathetically, even punctuating every word in the last sentence. 

“Wh-What?! I’m not some pet!”

“Don’t worry, I’d never keep a pet like you, I’ll take it off anyway when you get thrown out.” Said Riddle as he made his way towards the headmaster, with the squirming cat in his hands. 

As Azul fell into step with him, he praised his classmate: “Wow, as wonderful as ever. Any and all magic gets sealed by your Unique Magic, Riddle. I want it.” At Riddle’s strange look he quickly added,”….No, I wouldn’t ever want that cast on me.” 

“You must do something about this!” The headmaster said to Sora, who had made his way over to the headmaster as well, together with the one who had helped him. “It is your familiar! Properly discip…”

“But it is not my familiar!” Sora interrupted the headmaster. “I don’t even know what a familiar is….and anyway, I haven’t seen it before today.”

“Eh? It’s not yours? Why haven’t you said so before?” Was his perplexed reply. “Ahem, anyway, let’s get it out of the school at any rate. We won’t turn you into a stew, for I am gracious. Someone help, please.” At his request someone stepped up to Riddle and took the struggling cat from him and made to remove him from the room. 

“Gyaaa! Let me go! I’m going to, going to…Become the greatest magician!”

“Aw, c’mon, sir. Ain’t that a bit harsh. Couldn’t you give him a change?” Sora asked the headmaster hopefully. Even though he caused a lot of damage and hurt some students, it did not look like the cat was out to hurt anyone. Thankfully, nobody got seriously hurt and the damaged seemed to be manageable thanks to his and the other student’s quick interference. 

“Preposterous! To even consider such a thing. It has been unheard of for a monster to attend this academy, let alone one as unruly as this one.” The headmaster sputtered. 

“I kinda feel bad for him.” Sora muttered, but the headmaster chose to ignore him. 

“We had a bit of trouble along the way, but this brings the entrance ceremony to a close. Dormitory heads, please show the new students back to the dormitories……Hm? Since Mr. Draconia did not show up to the ceremony, there’s nobody to lead the new Diasomnia students….”

“That’s not so different from usual, is it?” Said the Lion-eared student.

“What? Did nobody tell him about the ceremony?” Said the rain-teen still next to Sora. 

“If you’re going to complain, you should’ve done it yourself.” Said the blonde in reply

“Hmmmm. But I don’t really know anything about that guy….”

Whispers erupted in the group of students. They seemed to be talking about this Draconia person. Was he famous or something…. Before Sora could ponder more about the identity of the absent dorm leader, someone entered the room. It was a rather short, young-looking teen with pale skin and short, dark hair with pink streaks. Most noticeably were the dark red eyes, pointed ears and fangs peeking out when he spoke. 

“I was correct. I thought he might come, but Malleus really didn’t. It seems the invitation ‘never arrived’ again.” Said the newcomer in a surprisingly deep voice. 

“My deepest apologies. I promise we didn’t intend to exclude him.” Offered Azul.

“His aura makes it hard to approach him.” Added Riddle.  
“It’s fine. Members of Diasomnia Dormitory can come with me……I hope this doesn’t upset him…” 

Before the newcomer turned around to lead his students, his eyes met Sora’s and widened in surprise. Then Sora felt something intangible brushing against something inside him. However, it disappeared as quickly as it appeared. What…was that feeling. Was it magic? 

The other dorm leaders had also started to lead there students out of the room. At least most of them had. Rain-teen had remained at his side. 

“Hi, I didn’t get the chance to thank you before. Thank you so much for pushing me out of the way of that fireball!” The teen said with a huge smile, which Sora enthusiastically returned. “Let’s be friends! My name is Kalim Al-Asim!” 

Kalim grabbed Sora’s hands in his and his smile become even brighter. “Of course! The name’s Sora…as you probably already know. Haha… It was really awesome how you summoned that rain storm!” After Kalim had released Sora’s hands, the two talked some more between themselves. Not for long though, since the waiting students and headmaster were visibly getting more impatient. 

“I have to go now. Good luck with the headmaster!” Was said in goodbye before Kalim started to lead the last students from the hall.

Sora watched Kalim leave before turning to the headmaster, who was already looking at him. 

“Come along, I’ll show you were you will be staying during your time here. Even though the Dark Mirror was unable to sort you, you were chosen to attend this academy, so a dorm will be provided for you.” The Headmaster said and started to walk away, clearly expecting Sora to follow him. 

As Sora followed the headmaster, he was pondering about how he could bring up that he was never supposed to attend the academy. Or at least he doesn’t think he was…. His most recent memories before waking up here remain kind of blank to him, so he’s not sure if he might have agreed to attend this academy. His friends were safe back home and he always enjoyed learning to cast magic, so it might not be that far of a leap to consider that he would attend a magic school. Although, he hadn’t been to school for a couple of years, so it might take a while to get used to it again. But he doesn’t know for certain whether his friends know what happened to him. He should really let them know somehow.

However, he shouldn’t really spread around that he is from a different world, since Donald always talks about world order or something… Mmmh, maybe he should just pretend he is from around here and look for a way to contact his friends by himself. AAHG, this is so hard. Normally he would have Donald and Goofy to help come up with plans, especially when discretion was necessary….Which was never really Sora’s strongest suit. 

Lost in thought, Sora hadn’t noticed that the headmaster had stopped and almost bumped into him. Only his fast reflexes saved him from that fate. 

“This is where I’ll be staying?” Sora said slightly bewildered as he looked upon the decrepit building before him. It was rather large, but didn’t seemed to be lived in for a quite a while. It actually looked a bit like a haunted house. One that wouldn’t look too out of place among the buildings in Halloween Town.

“Right, right. Please come inside. Don’t worry, it doesn’t look that bad on the inside.” The headmaster replied as he opened the gate to the premises. The two walked in silence to the front door and the headmaster opened the door with a key. As the key turned, Sora felt a small release of energy and looked in shock to the headmaster.

“Ah, you noticed that, did you.” The headmaster said as he took in Sora’s reaction. “It was just the release of the wards that kept this place secure while not in use. Not many people are that sensitive to magic, mmmh….Well, don’t worry, child, come on.”

Surprised, Sora observed his surroundings as he made his way through the entrance hall and into the dorm’s lounge. It actually looked nothing like the outside. Everything looked to be in pristine condition, if maybe a bit dusty. The walls were adorned with paintings, a bookcase was in one corner next to a fireplace and before the staircase leading the second floor was a large cozy white-grey striped couch. And next to the couch was a……Suitcase?

“This place was renovated some time ago. However, to keep nosy students out, a glamor was cast on the outside. Make yourself at home.” Said the headmaster. “Normally your dorm head would explain this to you, but since you’re the only one in this dorm, that would make you the dorm head. Ahem. A set amount of food will be delivered to your kitchen every week. However, should you require more, you have to pay for it yourself. Toiletries and other supplies are also to be obtained from your own funds. School tomorrow starts at 9 with a opening ceremony in the hall of mirrors. There you will also receive your schedule and further information. I suppose that is all. Do you have any questions?”

“Umm, is there a way to earn money while attending the academy?” Sora asked, not sure how to explain that he probably has none of this worlds currency and was therefore effectively broke….

“Mmh, you could see if there is a position available at either Mr. S’s Mystery Shop or at the café run by Octavinelle, Mostro Lounge.”

After a quick goodbye, Headmaster Crowley left Sora alone in the empty dorm. Or was is as empty as Sora had first assumed….

“Hyiiii! It’s really coming down!” Was what Sora suddenly heard in a strangely familiar voice. Soon the grey cat monster walked into the lounge, but froze upon spotting Sora.

“Gyah! What are you doing here. The Great Grim chose this place to hide from the rain. I’ll have no trouble sneaking back into the school tomorrow when it’s nice and dry. If ya think getting thrown out is gonna make me give up on getting in, you’ve got another thing coming!” 

Before Sora could offer a reply, an ominous cackle echoed through the room. 

“Hihihi……Hihihi…..We haven’t had a guest in so long…..I’m itching for some action…..Hihihi!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I want to thank Shel_BB and AmiYoshiko for their translations. Without them, I wouldn’t have been able to write this.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here’s the second chapter. It’s a bit shorter than last, but I thought this was a good place to end things. I hope to finish the next chapter before the end of this week or at the beginning of the next.
> 
> I don’t think I’m that great at fight scenes and the game itself doesn’t really show how the ghosts attack, so I tried to improvise a bit and I like how it turned out. I hope you like it as well.

“Huh, we’re not alone here?” Sora asked as he looked around the room. However, Sora wasn’t the first to spot whoever spoke.

“What are you talking ab……..Gyaaaaa!!! G-g-ghoooooostss!!” Grim yelled in fright upon noticing their company. There, right by the entrance were three ghostly beings hovering about. Strangely, they were all wearing black top hats and gray cloaks. 

“Aw, Grim. Don’t be scared! I have a couple of friends who are ghost and they are awesome!” Sora tried to reassure Grim.

The ghost seemed pretty surprised upon hearing this, but shook it off quickly. “The people living here got scared of us and left.” One of the ghosts said. 

“We’ve been looking for more ghost pals. How about you guys?” Another ghost, this one slightly bigger than the other ones, added.

“Uuuu, uuuuh….! Grim, the great magician, isn’t scared of some ghosts!!” Grim yelled, both to the ghosts and Sora. He then prepared himself to shoot off an attack. Although Sora tried to stop him, the cat wouldn’t listen and fired multiple blue flames at the ghosts. Or at least, he tried to fire at them. Instead some flames ended up hitting the wall next to the ghosts, while others flew to the floor. Before anything could catch on fire, sora doused the flames with water magic.

“What are you doing, Grim. You shouldn’t just attack people!” Sora scolded Grim. However, instead of calming him down, this seemed to fire the cat up even more. 

“Where are you aiming?” The third ghost mocked Grim. 

“Over here, over here! Heeeeheeeheee!” Added the larger ghost, making Grim even more angry.

“Shoot! Stop disappearing!” Grim growled in frustration. Of course this lead to Grim firing another salvo of blue flames at the ghosts. Again, none of them hit their intended target.

“Ah, Grim! Watch out! You’ll burn the place down like this.” Sora scolded Grim. However, he noticed something while observing the cat monster. “Wait a minute….Are you really closing your eyes when you breathe fire?” He added incredulously after putting out even more fires. 

“Shut up! Don’t tell me what to do! I don’t need your help, for I am the great Grim!” 

“You didn’t have to attack them!” Sora argued back. “They could have been friendly and now you’ve made them angry!”

“You hear that, Danny. One of them seems nice…None of that attacking or running away business that usually happens.” The tall, tin ghost stated to his companions, which was completely ignored by the bickering duo. 

“Maybe we should give him a chance……After scaring the cat monster some more, of course~!” Presumably Danny replied. 

“This will be so much fun~!” The large, somewhat round ghost added. 

The three shared one more look, before they set their plan in motion. From out of nowhere, the group of ghosts produced a bunch of water balloons and they all simultaneously threw one at the unsuspecting cat. Since Grim was still busy arguing with Sora, he did not notice anything until it was to late and all three projectiles burst upon hitting the cat, soaking him completely.

“Gyaaaaa! What the hell!” Grim shrieked and tried to shake the water from his fur. Before he could succeed, he was hit by another salvo of water balloons. “Stop attacking me! Bunch of cowards ganging up on me! Hey you, human! Stop those stupid ghosts and tell me where to fire!”

Sora had to suppress his laughter at the sight of the soaked cat, but agreed to help him anyway. The teen casted a weak Aero to hold of the ghost. Green winds surrounded Sora and the ghost were momentarily immobilized by the wind magic. At the same time, Grim took aim where Sora directed him and managed to hit the ghosts with multiple fireballs. Together the two were able quickly drive off the ghosts. 

“E-eh? We….won?” Grim uttered, looking around searching for any wayward ghost. However, they seemed to be truly gone. 

“Good job, Grim! You’re fire is really awesome!” Sora praised the cat.

“Gyahahaha! The great Grim knows how amazing he is~! This was nothing for me! How ‘bout that, ghosts? You done?” The cat replied arrogantly and puffed out his chest.

“Good evening. I have graciously brought you supper.” Said a familiar voice. 

At the sound, Sora turned around, surprised. There, the headmaster had just walked through the door, holding a tray with food on it. However, upon noticing Grim’s presence, the headmaster halted his progress into the room. “You’re the monster that ran amuck during the entrance ceremony! I had you thrown out of the school! What are you doing here?!” 

After reassuring the headmaster that Grim mean no harm, the teen told him what had happened. Though, he did leave out the slight fire damage that the cat hat caused and exaggerated the part Grim had played in chasing of the ghosts.

“Now that you mention it, there were some prankster ghosts living here, so students kept away from this dormitory. And that’s why it had been empty, before we decided to renovate it. I’d forgotten that. However, hmmm….For you two to work together to get rid of them….” The headmaster uttered looking thoughtful. 

Grim chose that moment to interrupt the headmaster’s thoughts. “I’m not gonna overlook that “together” comment. He was just standing there watching. And I want a can of tuna for all the work I did!” 

“I’ll get you a can of tuna as soon as I can, Grim. I promise!” Sora promised the grumpy cat with a smile. He was already starting to like the cat. He kinda reminded the teen of a grumpier and more arrogant version of Donald. Well, maybe only a little bit. Thank god Donald never was so trigger happy with fire attacks. 

Seemingly having come to a conclusion, the headmaster addressed the duo again. “I’d like the two of you to show me how you exterminated those ghosts.” 

“But we’ve already gotten rid of all the ghosts!” Grim stated.

In response, the headmaster spread his arms wide and theatrically proclaimed, “I shall be your ghosts. If you beat me, I’ll give you some tuna cans. For I am gracious.” He ended with a laugh and drank something from a flask he had procured from his coat. Then, the headmaster suddenly turned translucent and started to float. 

“Eeeeeh, I don’t wanna. This is a pain and I have to team up with him again…..” Grim muttered sullenly. 

Sora took no offence and tried to motivate the cat instead. “This might be a chance to get into the school, ya know. If you impress the headmaster, he has no choice but to let you attend! And don’t forget the promised tuna!” As the word ‘tuna’ passed Sora’s lips, Grim’s demeanor immediately shifted. Gone was the grumpy sullenness, it was instead replaced with determination. 

Seeing they were ready, the headmaster fired off magic blasts simultaneously at Grim and Sora. The teen managed to dodge, but Grim didn’t. However, he didn’t need to. Before the attack could hit, a barrier of light appeared before the cat, reflecting the attack back to its caster. Not having expected this turn of events, the headmaster was hit. Seeing an opening, Sora directed Grim to shoot off multiple fireballs. Then Sora casted another weak Aero to give the fireballs more of a push. With the added power, the fireballs were able to knock back the headmaster. For a while there was some more back and forth attacks between the headmaster and the duo. At least half of the duo’s attacks hit their intended target, while Sora managed to dodge or reflect all the attacks aimed at them. 

After a final successful aero/fireball combo, the headmaster was suddenly enveloped in smoke. When the smoke cleared, the duo could see that he had regained his corporal form again. 

“Hee-Haaa…. How ‘bout that!”

“I can’t believe….. there is a person who can command monsters. Hmmm…. Actually, my teacher senses were telling me since the uproar during the entrance ceremony….that you have talent as an animal or wild beast trainer. But…..no matter how……” The last words were muttered so quietly that the teen was unable to hear it. 

“Headmaster, sir, could you possibly let Grim stay here with me? He really wants to go to this school and I would love having him here. He could ….um….help me with the….uh…ghost problem?” Sora pleaded to the headmaster, hoping to help the cat.

“What now? Let a monster live here?” Headmaster Crowley answered sounding perplexed. However, Sora somehow felt that was not what the man was really feeling. A sly grin appeared on the man’s face. “….Hah….It can’t be helped. Alright.” Crowley conceded.

“Really!?” Both Grim and Sora asked, the first sounding surprised and the latter sounding more than a bit suspicious. Finding it rather strange how quickly the man had changed his tune. Well, the teen could worry about it later.

“However. I can’t simply allow someone, let alone a monster, who wasn’t selected by the Dark Mirror into the school. Alas, I can’t just allow you to be a student here. For I am gracious, you may stay in the dorm as long as young Sora here supervises you. Thus, you can also join him in his classes, however if you misbehave, I will have you removed again and this time permanently.” 

“Eeh!? I’m not okay with that! I wanna wear that fancy uniform and be a student!” Grim argued vehemently. 

Seeing the dark look that crossed the headmaster’s face, Sora intervened before the man would retract his offer. “Grim, take this chance! If you show everyone how great you are, maybe the headmaster will reconsider and make you a student.”

“It’s fine if you’re unsatisfied. I could simply toss you out now, if you want…..” The headmaster trailed off ominously causing the cat to shudder.

“Fgnaaaa!? I get it! I’ll behave! At least I can attend classes….” Grim trailed off.

“Wonderful. Then, starting tomorrow, endeavor to be on your best behavior and assist Sora in his studies at Night Raven College!“ With that cheerful proclamation, the man left the duo alone.

After the rather eventful evening, Sora and Grim ate the meal provided by the headmaster, which included a can of tuna for the cat. However, before going to bed, Sora decided to take a look at the contents of the suitcase. Surprisingly, some of Sora’s clothes and other belongings were inside, even his gummiphone. But when the teen turned it on, there was no signal. So he couldn’t use that to contact his friends then…..It couldn’t be that easy, of course. It never was…. 

Sora also found multiple sets of some sort of school uniform, which seemed to include black pants with a gold line on the outer sew line, a light lavender waistcoat lined in gold and a black jacket, with a breast pocket, gold lines around the collar and a brooch with long laces attached to the left arm. Additionally, a black-white striped tie and a strange pen with a lavender colored crystal was also included. It looked like the pen Kalim was waving around when he made the rain storm appear during the entrance ceremony. Maybe it’s used to channel magic in this world? Well, if that’s the case, he should probably take it with him to class to better blend in. Maybe he could also learn to use it? 

While Sora was busy unpacking in his bedroom, Grim explored the dorm. That is until he became tired and decided to take a nap in one of the available bedrooms, which as it turned out was the room Sora had chosen for himself. Thus, when Sora decided to head to bed as well, he found the cat sound asleep on his bed. Fortunately, it was a queen sized bed and after changing into sleep clothes, Sora was able to slip in without waking the cat. 

“Good night….Grim.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I want to thank Shel_BB and AmiYoshiko for their translations. Without them, I wouldn’t have been able to write this.
> 
> I am currently reading another Twisted Wonderland fic, 'Once upon a dream' by AvionVadion and I can't definitely recommend it. I love the relationships between the characters and the different twist to the dream visions the MC receives.


	3. Chapter 3

The next morning came bright and early. During the night, Grim had slowly gravitated towards Sora. Thus, as Sora woke up, he could feel a soft, warm bundle lying against his side. Still half asleep, he started to slowly pet the cat, which Grim seemed to like if the soft purring sound was to be believed.

“Heeeheee…..Don’t you two have to attend the welcoming speech by the headmaster this morning?” Someone asked close to Sora’s ear. 

“Mmhmm….Five more minutes, Donald..” Sora mumbled. 

Wait, that didn’t sound like either Donald or Goofy. Realization setting in, Sora shot up in bed. Next to him were the three ghosts from yesterday. 

“Laze about too long and you’ll never wake up again.” Joked Danny. At least Sora hoped he was joking…

“Just like us! Eee heehee!” The third ghost added from right next to Grim.

“Ffgya?!” Grim exclaimed as he abruptly woke up. “It’s those ghosts again! Hey you, chase them off for me won’t you! I want to sleep some moooreee~!”

“I don’t think they mean us any harm, Grim.” Sora said to Grim, before turning his attention to their ghostly companions. “Hi, I think we started off on the wrong foot yesterday. My name’s Sora. What are your names?” He smiled brightly at them, patiently waiting for an answer. 

“Ohohoh! You want to know our names.” The ghost seemed to think about it for a bit. "....Alright, name’s Nick. Those are Danny and Clyde.” He said as he pointed at the other two ghosts. 

“Are you all going to be living here?” Clyde asked. Sora nodded enthusiastically in reply. “Well, you’re gonna get pranked. Kekeke!” Clyde cackled.

“Nya, why do you have to be nice to them..” Grim grumbled.

After some more idle chatter, Sora suddenly shot out of bed. “Shoot, it’s getting late. I better hurry up if I want to be on time.” 

Sora hurried out of the room, school uniform in hand, and entered the bathroom. There he quickly brushed his teeth, washed himself and got dressed. However, tying his tie proved to be quite difficult. After multiple attempts, none of them looking as they should, he decided to just leave it at the last attempt. Thus, he re-entered his bedroom with a tie that could just as easily have been tied by a toddler. He noticed the ghosts had left and Grim was still on the bed. 

“Come on, Grim. Let’s grab something to eat before we head out. I think I saw some more tuna cans somewhere in the kitchen.”

“Funa? Why didn’t you say so sooner! Come on, human, I want my tuna!” Grim demanded as he jumped of the bed and unto Sora’s shoulder. 

Sora had to steady himself a bit due to the additional weight before he started walking towards the kitchen. He grabbed a tuna can, opened it and placed it on the counter, causing Grim to quickly hop off his shoulder to go to his prized tuna. Thinking a moment about it, Sora placed another opened tuna can next to Grim as well. If he didn’t the cat would probably demand another one anyway. Having fed Grim, Sora then focused on his own food. He found a loaf of bread in a cupboard and a couple different jars of jam in the fridge. Okay with that combo, he prepared some toast with strawberry jam. 

Grim emptied out both cans in record time, but had to wait for Sora to finish his breakfast. With that done and over with, Grim jumped into Sora’s arms this time, unwilling to walk all the way to the school, and the two headed toward the hall of mirrors. Sora was actually feeling a bit nervous and started to pet Grim to relieve some of his nerves. Even though Grim protested slightly when the teen started his petting, he slowly relaxed as he was scratched behind his ear. The teen however, kept worrying. He couldn’t really remember the last time he went to school. At least not since he started his adventure almost two years ago now. It actually felt like ages ago. So much had happened since then…..However, he was looking forwards to making new friends! And learning more about this world! And possibly finding some way to contact his friends….Hopefully they won’t worry too much about him….

Lost in thought, Sora hadn’t noticed they had arrived at their destination until Grim poked his cheek with a paw.

“Pay attention, human! You almost walked into another human! Not that I care…” Grim trailed off, sounding a bit embarrassed. 

“Gee, thanks for the save Grim!” The teen said while looking around him. Quite a few students were already gathered in the hall. The headmaster was also already present in the middle of the room, joined by 3 unfamiliar men. The most noticeable one was dressed in a thick black-and-white striped furry coat over a half-black-and-half-white vest, a black dress shirt, and black dress pants. His hair stood out as well, since the left half of his side-parted hair was white, while the other half was black. He was actually looking a bit disapproving at the crowding students around him. However, when he turned towards Sora’s general direction, his gaze seemed to zero in on the teen. Well, more precisely on his tie. Catching sight of the mess, a scowl appeared on his face. Fortunately, the man next to him distracted him, freeing Sora from his scrutiny. The other man was no less intimidating and seemed rather stern and unapproachable. He was significantly older than the other men present, which was most noticeably shown by his graying hair. He was wearing long maroon robes with a black suit peeking out underneath. Attached to his collar was a white frilly piece of fabric, which Sora found kind of silly looking, tied off with a pendant. The last man actually looked kind of normal compared to the rest. He looked quite strong and burly, which reminded him a bit of Hercules, had dark brown hair styled in a pompadour and a thin beard framing his face. Furthermore, he was wearing athletic black pants and a red jacket adorned with gold stripes and a golden stag-head could be seen on the right side of his chest. He was also wearing what looked like a whistle around his neck. But why would he need a whistle today? Were they going to play a port? Maybe he just always wears it?

“Ehem, ehem. Can I get your attention everyone. As most of you might already know, my name is Dire Crowley and I am the Headmaster of this prestigious school of magic. Today I want to welcome you all to Night Raven College and I hope to see you all flourish in the years to come.” The headmaster started his speech. “I know most of you’ve already been welcomed by your dorm leaders yesterday. Today I want to tell you all something about the history of this school and introduce you to your teachers.”

As the headmaster droned on about the founding of the school and its ideals, Sora zoned out. Instead of listening he observed the students around him. Everyone looked quite different. Some teens had fluffy animal ears and tails, while others had rather colorful hair. Unfortunately, he noticed that most of the teens surrounding him were quite a bit taller than him. His height has always been a bit of a sore spot for him, and being surrounded by so many ridiculously tall people didn’t make him feel better at all….One dark skinned teen with silver wolf-like ears standing close to him was easily more than a head taller. But he looked to be the tallest teen in the room anyway. Thankfully, he wasn’t the only vertically challenged teen in there. A little bit further to his left, he could see a teen with lavender hair that was maybe even a little bit shorter than Sora. 

“May I introduce you to our prized teachers,” The headmasters words snagged Sora’s attention again. “Divus Crewel, Mozus Trein and Ashton Vargas.” He said as he pointed to the men next to him, starting with the man in black and white, then the intimidating older man and leaving the burly man for last. 

The crowd started to politely applaud them as they were introduced and Sora, unused to such a situation, followed their example. Sora really expected the teachers to then tell them something about themselves or about some other appropriate subject, but instead he informed them that the next part of the day would consist of an introductory class with their homeroom teacher, followed by a tour of the school. 

The Headmaster started to call out which students would be in which class and who the corresponding homeroom teacher would be, starting with class 1-A, which would have Mozus Trein as homeroom teacher. Sora was not placed in this class. Next, the students for class 1-B were called. This class would have the most intimidating teacher, at least according to Sora, Divus Crewel. He really hoped he was not placed in this class. He thought his wish had come true……but after 21 names, his name was called. He was student nr. 22. Maybe his homeroom teacher wouldn’t be as strict as he looked? He could always hope, Sora thought trying to be positive.

During all this, Grim had remained suspiciously well behaved and silent, so Sora cast a look at the cat in his arms. Grim was soundly asleep. He actually looked quite cute like that. The cat probably thought the speech to be as boring as Sora had thought. At least Sora remained awake, even if he didn’t really pay attention. Ah, he likely hadn’t missed anything important, right? 

Again not paying attention to what the headmaster said, Sora was surprised when people started to head to their respective homeroom teacher. He should really start paying more attention…..Anyway, Sora decided to follow their lead and headed to Mr. Crewel. Who unfortunately shifted his attention to the keyblade wielder as he approached. 

“Puppy, what have you done with your tie?!” The man exclaimed to Sora. “I expect that you puppies take the utmost care to look proper in your uniforms. Infractions will not be tolerated and should I catch you, you will be properly disciplined.” He informed all the teens surrounding him. Who really started to look nervous at the harsh warning form their new homeroom teacher. 

Sora swallowed nervously when the man focused on him again. “Since it’s the first day, I will let it pass. But puppy, I expect you to have a perfectly tied tie tomorrow.”

“Yes, sir! I promise, Sir!” Sora hurriedly promised. He was already thinking about how he could accomplish this, since he didn’t know how to tie a tie, and was therefore seriously startled when something hard was pressed against his throat. His chin was tilted upward so Sora couldn’t look down to see what it was. It also made Sora unable to avoid looking the man in the eye. 

“Refer to me as Master Crewel, like a good little pup.” The man ordered. 

“Yes, M-Master Crewel!” Sora quickly corrected, watching the man with large bewildered eyes. 

Master Crewel seemed satisfied with his response and removed the object from the teens throat, revealing its shape. It was a….. Teaching pointer? Some students around him had been snickering at his ordeal, however they quickly shut up when their teacher pointedly looked at them. Surprisingly, Grim has slept right through all the excitement. When everyone from class 1-B had gathered around Mr. Crewel, the man lead them out of the room and to a classroom. At Mr. Crewels order, everyone took a seat and he proceeded to introduce himself.

“My name is Divus Crewel. You shall refer to me as Master Crewel.” At this, some students had to suppress their snickers, remembering Sora’s ordeal earlier. However, none dared to make a sound, unwilling to unleash the teachers fury on themselves. “Starting from today, I will be your homeroom teacher. If you pups come across any trouble, you can come to me and I might provide you with my help.” Their homeroom teacher explained how things at Night Raven College worked, what rules that had to follow and finished with a warning that they should do their best to behave or else….

“Next, you will be divided into groups of three, which will be paired up with either a second or third year student. This student will then take you on a tour around the school and will be available to answer your questions. When I call out your names, please leave the classroom to meet your assigned senior.” Master Crewel told his students. 

Three students at a time rose up from their seat, quickly emptying the classroom. Finally, Sora’s group was called.

“The next group will be Epel Felmier, Jack Howl and Sora. Assigned to you is…….”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And that wraps up the third chapter already. Who do you think will be the one to give Sora’s group a tour? He’s one of my favorite characters and I’m really excited to introduce him to my story! 
> 
> I hope you all like how I handle Sora’s introduction to Night Raven College. Even though canon does not have the MC attend the first day of school, Ace does tell MC that he has classes that first day when they meet at the main street. So I inferred that there was some form of class for students on their first day. However, all teachers introduces themselves during the first class MC has on their second day, thus they probably wouldn’t have had normal classes on their first day. Thus, I thought that there might have been some introductory event or something like that, so I came up with this. 
> 
> I think that Divus is supposed to be the home room teacher of 1-A, but I absolutely adore the man and definitely wanted to write him a lot, so I made him the home room teacher of Sora’s class, 1-B. 
> 
> And I think it’s strange that there are only 3 teachers, but I didn’t want to create any OCs for this, and I believe that all teachers teach more than one class, like Ashton Vargas teaches both PE and flying class, so I think it could work, somehow. I don’t know. Maybe there are some (off screen) teaching assistants as well that can supervise classes or classes of the same year are combined to make it easier to teach. I think I like to use the last idea, so for example 1-A and 1-B will have joint Magic history, but 1-B will have potions with 1-D (just like how classes are shared with another house in Hogwarts).
> 
> I want to thank:
> 
> \- Shel_BB  
> \- AmiYoshiko  
> \- Kanade Musings 
> 
> for their translations. Without them, I wouldn’t have been able to write this.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's another chapter of We’ll walk together towards dark unseen (and our hearts will be our guiding key). I hope you enjoy it! It was a lot of fun writing this.

“……Jade Leech.” Their homeroom teacher finished.

Upon hearing his name, Sora made his way to the teacher together with two other teens. The one coming to stand on his left dwarfed both him and his other classmate. It was one of the teens he had noticed during the entrance ceremony. The one with the silver-white wolf ears and tail. Fortunately, their other groupmate was not so ridiculously tall. He was even slightly shorter than Sora and had shoulder length, lavender hair. He also looked like a strong gust of wind would push him over. They introduced themselves while making their way out of the classroom. 

In the hallway, multiple students were standing around. Sora was already thinking about shouting Jade’s name, however before that could happen a teen approached them. He was rather striking with his short, teal colored hair with a longer, dark grey strand framing his left side and his two differently colored eyes. The color of his left eye was yellow, while his right was olive. 

“Are you Epel Felmier from Pomfiore, Jack Howl from Savanaclaw and Sora from the unused dorm?” The teen asked. At their confirmation he introduced himself. “I’m Jade Leech, a second year student and the vice dorm leader of Octavinelle. I’ll be providing you with a tour of the school premises. If you would follow me.”

At his direction, the trio followed Jade further into the school. While they were walking, Jade told them what the rooms they passed were generally used for. Some were allocated classrooms, others were used mainly for club activities. At Epel’s question, Jade told them that there were multiple clubs that students could choose from, including Track and field, which caught Jack’s attention, Magical shift, which interested Epel, and the board game club, which sounded nice to Sora. Their homeroom teacher should be able to point them to the club activity room to sign up. 

After a while they reached a courtyard with 7 statues. At first Sora didn’t pay any attention to them, but when the vice dorm leader stopped before them and Sora had carefully set the still sleeping cat monster on the ground, Sora gave them an once over. And froze in surprise…. He recognized almost all of them?! 

“The dorms present at this school are based off of the Great Seven you see here before you. Heartslabyul is grounded on following the Queen of Hearts’ Laws with their entire being.” Jade informed them and pointed to a statue on their left. It was a depiction of a rather plumb woman wearing a crown. Of course, Sora recognized her from his time trying to prevent Alice from being executed. She had refused to acknowledge Alice’s innocence, even with the evidence that Sora had provided. However, she was willing to desist her hostilities when Alice was kidnapped by heartless…. She wasn’t that bad, but why would anyone want a statue of her? And what Laws are they talking about? 

Then, the vice dorm leader pointed to the statue next to the Queen of hearts’. “Octavinelle, my dorm, was founded on the Sea witch’s benevolence. Aside from our sleeping quarters, the Octavinelle is also host to Mostro Lounge, a student run café. If you’re in need of refreshment, you should pay it a visit.” Wah! They had a statue of Ursula as well?! But she tricked people in making unfair deals with her. Why would anyone like her for that? And hadn’t he defeated her not once, but twice? Well, he guessed she might have been revived again and maybe done something good with her life afterwards? Or do these people admire her devious deeds? Are the other statues also based on enemies he had fought? 

Not really caring for being discrete, Sora whirled around to look at the remaining statues. This elicited some strange looks from his companions, but they fortunately chose to ignore his curious behavior for the moment. What Sora saw confirmed his earlier thoughts. Every statue, except for one, was someone he recognized and had fought before. Next to Ursula, standing proud was Scar. And across the street were statues of Hades, Jafar and even Maleficent. However, he did not know who the remaining statue was. She looked regal and was holding what looked like an apple. 

The existence of these statues greatly confused the keyblade wielder. Why did these people seem to worship and honor people that almost everyone he knew seemed to dislike, despise or fear. He became slightly discomforted as he wondered what kind of people would hold villains in such high regard. 

Well, he decided then, he would not let his opinion of his fellow students be influenced by this revelation. But this did bring another question to mind. How are all these villains know in this world? They lived in different worlds and there should supposedly be no connection…..Well, he knew that Maleficent is able to travel between worlds, so that could explain her presence, but not the others….. Could this mean that travel between worlds is known here? Or is something else at play here?

While Sora was occupied with his thoughts, Jade continued with his explanation. He explained to the trio, well mostly Jack and Epel, about how Savanaclaw was grounded on the fortitude of the King of Beasts, which Sora absent mindedly filled in as Scar, how Scarabia was formed from the careful planning of the Sorcerer of the Desert, how Pomefiore was grounded on the magnanimous efforts of the Beautiful Queen, how Ignihyde foundations lied on the perseverance of the king of the underworld and lastly how Diasomnia was founded on the gracefulness of the Queen of Thorns. 

At the end of the explanation, Sora had fully joined the conversation again and decided to ask something that had been bothering him for a while. “Hey Jade, how does that magic mirror decide what dorm students belong to? I’ve been wondering about that since it couldn’t sort me, ya know.”

“I see…..You surprised everyone with that outcome. The Mirror of Darkness uses its ability to look into someone’s soul to decide what Dorm they belong to. The dorm is supposed to reflect the student’s character. It’s rather peculiar that it couldn’t do so with you.”

“Eh? …..I don’t agree with you, senior Jade. I don’t really think I belong in Pomefiore….It’s rather pretty and full of beautiful people, high end goods, perfect furniture….It doesn’t suit me at all. I would have rather been sorted in the wild and brave Savanaclaw!” Epel exclaimed passionately, surprising the others. 

“What?! Really?! But you are so pretty!” Jack exclaimed surprised, but at seeing the effect his reaction had on Epel he quickly added. “Not that I wouldn’t want you there, of course. If you want to be in Savanaclaw and your will is strong enough, I believe you can do it! But is it even possible to transfer to another dorm…” Jack trailed off after his little motivation speech.

“It does not occur frequently, since the process off doing an official dorm transfer is a long and tedious one. However, it is possible if the correct procedures are followed.” Jade supplied.

“That’s great, Epel. If you need any help, I would be happy to help out!” Sora offered with a smile, gaining a small grateful smile from the small teen in return. 

“Ah…Um…T-thank you….I think I have to study a lot to improve my magic and become stronger… We could maybe study together? Or even train if you like to?” Epel suggested.

Before Sora could answer, Jack voiced his thoughts. “We could have a study group! And I plan to go running every morning before school, so you could both join me! It’s always more fun with friends!” Jack proposed enthusiastically, his tail wagging slightly in excitement. 

“F-friends?!” Epel exclaimed, while Sora simultaneously brightened and said; “Oh my gosh, that would be great! Let’s be friends!”

Seeing the excited expressions on both teens, Epel couldn’t help but feel excited as well. These two already seemed like better company than those rather shallow, fashion obsessed people from his dorm. And it they could really help him accomplish his goal, all the better for it. Thus, he gratefully accepted their help and they planned to meet up after class the next day already. 

Jade patiently watched it all play out, deciding not to waste any energy it getting them to move along. The tour would be over soon anyway, and he might learn something useful while listening to the younger teens. Sora was after all the student his dorm leader had told him to keep an eye on, so any information he could pass on to Azul would be appreciated. Maybe he could….

“Hey, Jade. You said that your dorm had a café. Do ya know if they are looking to hire people? You see I don’t really have any money to spare, so I have to rely on the stuff the school provides. And with how much Grim loves tuna, I don’t think I’ll manage with only that….” When he talked about Grim, he looked down and blinked a couple times. Not really comprehending what he was seeing. Grim was not where he left him?! Okay, don’t worry. He can’t have gone too far. Hopefully he hadn’t caused anyone any problems. Not trying to show his worry, he looked to Jade before him. Who was looking at him with a polite smile, but Sora didn’t notice the carefully hidden calculating look in his eyes.

“We are always looking for new staff at the start of the school year. However, we normally do not hire outside of our dorm. Of course, exceptions can be made and I will inquire with our dorm leader whether he would be willing to offer you a chance. I will let you know his answer as soon as I can.” He answered. After Sora had profoundly thanked him, the slightly older teen let them now that the tour had ended and that they should eat some lunch in the cafeteria. “If you ever need anything during your time here at Night Raven College, my dorm leader and I will be able to help you….for the right price of course.” 

After these last ominous words, which went over Sora’s head, the vice dorm leader of Octavinelle bid them goodbye and left the trio alone. Epel hopefully suggested that they could eat lunch together, since he didn’t want to get pressured into eating with his dormmates by either his dorm leader or vice dorm leader. Jack immediately agreed. However, Sora was afraid to leave Grim unattended for too long and tried to decline.

“Sorry, guys. I just noticed that Grim is missing. I should probably go look for him before he gets into any trouble again.” Sora apologized. 

“Wait, you mean that you were carrying around that cat monster that caused all that ruckus last night?! Wasn’t he kicked out by the headmaster?” Epel asked bewildered, not having realized that the sleeping cat that had been with them all morning was the same as the monster that had terrorized everyone yesterday. It seemed so well behaved up until now.

“If he’s on the loose again, he must be found before he hurts someone. I don’t get why he’s still around, but I’ll help you look for him, Sora.” Jack offered. 

“Eh, r-really?! That would be great!” Sora cheered and explained to both teens what happened yesterday after the sorting and why Grim was allowed to stay. After hearing Sora’s explanation, Epel also offered his help. The trio then decided to split up to cover more ground and hopefully find the run-away cat sooner. 

~~

Sora wandered around the school for a while, looking for Grim. However, he couldn’t find him anywhere he looked. Then he heard a commotion up ahead. Someone was shouting and, as the teen got closer, he could recognize Grim’s voice. 

“Heheheh! Catch me if you can, suckers!”

“Kuh, getting on the chandelier is an underhanded move! We haven’t learned magic to fly yet…..we need something to get up there, and also catch him………Ah, I’ve got it!” A unknown voice could be heard as Sora came closer to the door leading to the cafeteria.

“We need to think of an idea….Whoa, Whoa, wait a sec! Why are you pointing your magic pen at me?!” Another voice said, sounding distressed.

When Sora opened the door, he was surprised by the sight he found. The cafeteria was still rather empty, with only a few students around. Up on the large chandelier in the middle of the ceiling the wayward cat was sitting comfortably and seemed to be riling up the two teens standing directly underneath him. Well, one of them was standing, the other, a boy with dark orange hair and a red heart over his right eye, was floating slightly above the ground.

“I’ll just throw you!” Shouted the teen with dark blue hair that was pointing his magic pen at the floating teen. He then made a motion like he was going to throw his pen.

“You’re joking?! Woooooaaaahaaa!” The other teen shouted as his body moved without his consent farther up in the air. “Don’t make me float! You’re really going to throw me? Knock it off!” He tried to reason with the other teen. Which appeared to be in vain. 

“Catch him, ya hear. Take aim….Fire!” 

The unfortunate student was launched at high velocity towards the chandelier. Seeing the danger that Grim and the teen would be in if they were to fall, Sora decided to interfere as he ran into the room. However, before he could fire of a spell to halt the teens movement he had already impacted with the chandelier.

“Ffnnghaaaa!?” Grim shrieked as the chandelier started to creak ominously. One final hard crack could be head and then it started to crash down. As the chandelier was falling down, Sora sprang up in the air towards it. He then caught the terrified cat and teen in his arms, planted his feet against the chandelier and used it to vault off into the air again. As the chandelier crashed to the ground, the keyblade wielder landed a safe distance away and set the other teen on the ground next to him while keeping his grip on the cat. The teen gripped his shoulder to steady himself and held his hand to his head. 

“The cha-chandelier! I-I screwed up! I didn’t think about the landing!” The blue-haired teen exclaimed.

“Are you….AN IDIOT?!” The teen next to Sora exclaimed after he regained his breath. He let go of sora and continued his angry tirade. “We caught the cat, but if the headmaster finds out we busted the chandelier….”

“If I…..find out?” A familiar voice said behind the assembled students. The trio whirled around to see the headmaster standing there, looking furious. Some of the present students could be heard snickering at their misfortune. 

“Ah…Headmaster….” Muttered the orange-head anxiously.

“Just~what~exactly~ARE YOU ALL DOING???” The headmaster shouted. “Tell me your name, dorm and class.”

“Ace Trappola, Heartslabyul, 1-A.” The orange haired teen answered quickly, unwilling to anger the man anymore.

“D-Deuce Spade, Heartslabyul, 1-A as well, Sir..” The other teen managed to get out. 

“And you, Sora, I expected better from you. Weren’t you supposed to keep an eye on that mangy cat of yours. That was the agreement for letting him stay. Please explain to me what happened here.” The man asked, barely keeping his rage in check. 

“A-ah, I….uh…actually don’t really know, sir. At the end of the school tour, I noticed that Grim was not with me anymore. So I decided to go look for him with the help of two of my classmates. We decided to split up to cover more ground and when I got closer to the cafeteria I noticed a commotion. As I entered the room, Deuce was ready to use magic to throw Ace towards Grim, who was in the chandelier. I couldn’t stop him, but I didn’t want anyone to get hurt….So I jumped up to them and got them away from the chandelier before it could hit the ground.” Sora explained.

Everyone looked slightly surprised at Sora’s motivation for rescuing Ace and Grim, especially the cat monster. The headmaster turned thoughtfully to Deuce and Ace and asked for one of them to explain what happened before Sora arrived. Since Deuce mentioned he hadn’t become involved until the end, Ace took it upon himself to explain. Apparently, Grim had run into Ace while running away from Sora. Which, Grim supplied, he did because he had gotten bored from sleeping around all day and he wanted to do something exciting. According to Ace, the cat had just randomly attacked him after that, but Grim argued that he did that because Ace kept insulting him. After one attack hit Ace, Grim decided to run away and was quickly chased by the teen. They then almost ran into Deuce, who managed to jump out of the way at the last second. Ace urged him to help him and the duo continued their pursuit of the cat. Which led to the scene Sora stumbled upon, with Grim having fled in the chandelier and the duo unable to reach him….

“This chandelier that you so callously destroyed is a masterpiece made by a legendary master of magical tools and has been entrusted to the school since its very foundation…….Taking its historical value into consideration, it would cost no less than a billion madol. Obviously, you can’t pay for those damages, so there is no other way than having you two be expelled and Grim kicked out!” The headmaster coldly said to the two teens and cat. “And you Sora, since you aren’t directly responsible for the damage, but you did neglect your responsibility of supervising that cat monster, which I so graciously allowed to stay….Hmmm….I think that would deserve some form of punishment. Maybe cleaning around the school for a week…”

“P-please! Anything but that! I have something to do at this school!” Deuce exclaimed desperately.

“But, teach, can’t you just fix it up with magic….” Ace asked hopefully.

“Magic is not all powerful. More importantly, the magic crystal, what we call the heart of any magical tool, was shattered. No two magic crystals are the same. The chandelier will never be lit again.” After a moment of silence the headmaster added more to himself than the listening teens: “That’s right. There’s one way. There might be one way to fix the chandelier.”

“What?!” Deuce and Ace shouted with renewed hope. Even Sora looked hopeful for them, not wishing them to be so harshly punished. It would be a shame to be expelled on your first day after all.

“The magic crystal for this chandelier was minded in the Dwarf’s mine. If we have a magic crystal of the same kind as the original, repairs might be possible.” The headmaster explained. “However, I have no guarantee that there are any left in the mine. The mine has been closed for a while and it’s very possible it is exhausted of crystals.”

“I’ll do anything if it means not getting expelled!” Deuce proclaimed. 

“Uuahh, I suppose. Let’s get that magic crystal and be done with it…” Ace said, decidedly sounding less enthusiastic than Deuce. 

“Fnyaa..If I do this, I won’t have to leave the school….and maybe he will even let me be a student…Alright, I’m in!” Grim muttered the middle part, but exclaimed his participation loudly.

“…Fine. I shall give you one night. Come to me with a magic crystal by tomorrow morning, or face explusion.”

“Wait! Guys, I’ll help as well.” Sora quickly interjected before they could walk away. “Grim is my responsibility, and I would feel bad letting you do this by yourselves…And it should be easy peasy if we all work together anyway.” The teen said with a smile. However, he didn’t get why both teens turned slightly red after he said that.

“I-I, uh, guess that you can come along. N-not that we need your help or anything.” Ace replied, while avoiding looking Sora in the eyes. Instead of answering, Deuce had decided to just simply nod along with whatever Ace said. 

“Funa? Of course my henchman should help us.” Grim added looking strangely at the teens.

“Well, I suppose you could help them. That would also lift your punishment, of course. However, if you don’t succeed, it will be two weeks of cleaning for you instead of one.” The headmaster warned the teen. However, this did not seem to deter Sora in the slightest. “Use the gate in the mirror chamber to go directly to Dwarfs’ Mine.”

“Yes, sir!” The three teens said simultaneously and Sora even saluted the headmaster. They then made their way to the mirror chamber in silence, Sora in the middle flanked by Deuce and Ace and Grim walking slightly before him. When they arrived before the mirror, Deuce moved to stand before it.

“Mirror, mirror on the wall! Light our way to Dwarfs’ Mine!” He chanted and the surface of the mirror started to ripple. When the mirror had calmed down again, a gloomy, dilapidated house could be seen located in an almost pitch black forest. Then, Deuce looked at the others and motioned them forwards. When they stood next to him, he grabbed their hands and pulled them through the mirror. Grim, quickly realizing what was happening, hurried after them before the mirror could return to normal. 

Sora hadn’t noticed the arrival of his two new friends at the last second and the bewildered look they shared. What had the teen stumbled upon to cause him to leave school grounds on the first day. At least he seemed to have found the wayward cat….

~~

Traveling through the mirror felt like stepping through a wall of water Sora thought as he materialized on the other side of the mirror He was still being pulled along by Deuce. Of course, when the blue-haired teen noticed, he quickly released both Sora’s and Ace’s hands, looking slightly flustered. 

Not knowing which way to go, the trio (and cat), decided to head towards the house, hoping to find some clue to the presence of the crystal they were looking for. 

“So this is Dwarfs’ Mine…..It used to be prosperous, thanks to magic crystal mining, but….” Deuce explained as they walked. 

“Uuuuh…..Feels like something could jump out at us……” Grim muttered while cautiously looking around at the trees surrounding them. 

“Don’t be such a scaredy cat. Nothing will jump out at us.” Ace mocked the cat, not seeming to be bothered by the dark forest surrounding them on all sides. 

“If you’re scared, you can always jump on my shoulder, Grim. I promise I’ll keep you safe.” Sora offered the cat, but the cat declined, proclaiming that he wasn’t scared and didn’t need to be coddled. 

As they arrived at the house, they proceeded to enter it after knocking on the door and not getting any answer. 

“Good evening…….I guess it’s abandoned.” Deuce observed as he looked around at the dusty interior. It looked like it had been abandoned for quite some time. Cobwebs were everywhere, furniture was falling apart and every surface was covered in a thick layer of dust. “It’s a mess in here.” Deuce stated what everyone was thinking. 

As the group moved further into the room, Grim suddenly started to shriek. “Puwah! I got a spider web in my face…..Peh! Peh!” The cat then tried to remove the web from his face with his paws, but was rather unsuccessful, since he couldn’t get everything off¬¬. Deciding to take pity on the cat, Deuce helped him out.

“Aren’t the tables and chairs ono the small side? Are they for kids?” Ace remarked as he walked towards the large table in the middle of the room. “One, two…there’s seven! So many!”

“Maybe dwarfs lived here…..It IS named Dwarfs’ Mine.” Sora reasoned.

“Eh, that could be true…This was probably a lively home when the mine flourished.” Deuce replied.

“They did what they had to. After all, magic crystals are found inside coal.” Ace seemed to get inpatient and tried to hurry them along. “For now, let’s go check it out.”

As they others agreed, they made their way out of the house and towards the mine that could be seen peeking out behind the house. The entrance was beneath the roots of a rather large tree and didn’t look to be completely stable. However, they couldn’t look too far into the mine, since it was rather dark.

“W-We’re gonna go in that pitch black cave?!” Grim asked trying to hide his nervousness. 

“Scared again? Lame.” Ace mocked the cat again. “You could always remain outside if you’re too scared. But then the headmaster has to kick you out of the school of course~” His words seemed to have the desired effect and seemed to infuriate the cat. 

“Naaaaah!? I’m not scared at all! I’m taking the lead! You guys, follow me!”

The cat’s reaction seemed to amuse the teens, but they followed him anyway into the mines. They walked for a while, before Deuce stopped them. 

“!? Wait!....Something is there!” He cautioned them.

“What, I don’t see anythi-“ Ace started to say, before he was interrupted by a new voice.

“Heee hee hee! Our first visitor in ten years!” echoed through the mine’s tunnel. The trio quickly whirled around in surprise trying to locate the origin of the voice. There behind them a ghost was floating. However, when they turned to look forward again, another ghost had blocked their bad. They were effectively blocked in.

“Make yourselves at home...For eternity!” The ghost before them said as soon as he got their attention. 

“This place is haunted with ghosts, too!” Ace yelled in shock. 

Deuce looked at him and tried to motivate him. “We don’t have time to deal with them one by one. Let’s go!”

Agitated Ace replied to Deuce, “Don’t think you can order me around. If you hadn’t done something so idiotic, we wouldn’t be in this mess.”

“Wait, guys. This doesn’t have to end up in a fight. Maybe we can reason with them. The ghosts in my dorm were nice to me after we cleared up our misunderstanding.” Sora interfered before the others could start a fight. With either the ghosts….or each other.

“Mmh….You want to talk with us?” The first ghost asked. “It has been a while since we had any decent conversation. What brings you lot here?”

“We’re looking for a magic crystal! You see, these three,” Sora gestured to Deuce, Ace and Grim, “managed to destroy one at the school that we attend. We have to get a new one before tomorrow or the headmaster is going to expel them.” The teen explained.

At his explanation both ghost looked thoughtful, before the second ghosts queried, “But what has that to do with you? Why help them?” He seemed rather baffled why anyone would make that much effort to help someone else. Even his companions seemed curious for his answer.

“Why wouldn’t I help them?” Sora replied sounding perplexed. During his journeys he had helped so many people without expecting anything in return, so it was almost second nature to offer his help to those who seemed to need it. Of course, he also felt guilty for Grim’s role in this whole mess, since it could have been avoided if he had kept a better eye on the cat.

Everyone looked surprised at that answer. Unused to someone being so selfless, but the teen sounded genuine. Which really took the fun out of riling them was what the ghosts were thinking. 

“Ohohoh! So refreshingly pure! Go on, we won’t bother you anymore.” The second ghost told the group. “But be careful, something more sinister than us ghosts roams these mines.” 

After the ghost had said his warning he disappeared from sight. When they turned to look at the other ghost, he was nowhere to be seen. Thinking nothing of the warning, the group decided to continue exploring the mines. As they headed further down the tunnel, loud stomping sounds could be heard, making the group freeze in place.

“…..on’t …..ive……wo..” came from the general direction of the loud noises. It sounded like a low voice that was rather distorted. In response the trio turned to look at each other in indecision. Should they head towards the noise? Maybe this was the creature that the ghosts had warned them about.

“W-who said that?!” Ace voiced their thoughts. However, before anyone could answer, the strange voice could be heard again. Sounding alarmingly close to them. 

“St….one……ssssss…..mine….”

“I think it’s ….getting closer….” Deuce muttered nervously, gripping his magic pen tightly. Meanwhile Grim had moved to stand behind Sora’s legs and Ace had readied his magic pen as well. 

“Stone…..IS MIIINNNEEEEE!!!” Shouted a large creature that had just appeared from around the corner. He looked rather grotesque, with a glass bowl for a head that was cracked in the middle and leaking a mysterious dark liquid. The same liquid could also been seen dripping from one of its arms. It looked like ink…..He was wearing a worn-looking faded red tunic, that had probably seen better days and was carrying a large pick axe. All in all it made a terrifying sight. 

At seeing the monster that had appeared, Sora instinctively summoned his keyblade. This did not go unnoticed by his companions, however they had more pressing things to worry about than the strange weapon Sora had summoned. 

“What the heck is that thing?!” Deuce shouted sounding slightly scared.

“Fgnaaaa! Crowley didn’t say anything about that!! Let’s get outa here!” Grim yelled as he climbed Sora’s leg to settle on the teen’s shoulder. 

“It’s so nasty! But didn’t it mention a ‘stone’?!” Ace observed sounding surprisingly casual about it all. 

“So there really are magic crystals left! No matter the danger, I will not be expelled! I’m going!” Deuce proclaimed passionately and looked prepared to challenge the monster.

Sora, not seeing anything wrong with that shouted his agreement, “I’ve defeated far more dangerous enemies with my friends by my side. If we fight together, we can do it guys!”

“You’ve gotta be kidding?! How do you expect us to defeat that thing?!” Ace shrieked at the duo, however it had no effect and both Deuce and Sora moved in to engage the ink monster. Grim jumped off Sora’s shoulder in response. He really didn’t want anything to do with the fight. His henchman would probably able to handle it, right? 

“Go left, Deuce, and hit him with whatever you’ve got! I’ll attack from the right!” Sora shouted instructions to the other teen. “Ace, Grim, could you support us with magic from a distance?”

Not waiting for their reply, Sora moved to the right and hit the monster with a well-aimed thundara attack, stunning the monster momentarily. Seeing the opening the keyblade wielder had created, Deuce readied his own attack and launched a cauldron at it, hitting it in the head. A sharp crack resounded as the impacted area was damaged, causing more ink to leak from it. Next, Sora moved in to attack it with his keyblade, but the monster parried it away with his pick axe. However, it had not expected the power behind the attack and it lost its balance, stumbling backwards into the wall. 

As Ace and Grim unfroze from the unexpected turn this fight had already taken, they decided to help as well. While the ink monster was still slightly dazed, Grim fired a fireball, while Ace launched an air blast. The attacks impacted the monster one after the other. Unfortunately it didn’t seem to do much to it and the monster had shaken the attack off like it was nothing. Before anyone could react it swung its pick axe at Deuce and launched the teen into Ace. They both landed in a heap on the ground.

“Deuce! Ace! Are you alright?” Sora yelled at them without taking his eyes away from the monster in front of him. He hadn’t expected the monster to still be in fighting shape after the attacks that had already landed. He had to finish it quickly before the others got even more hurt. When he only heard some groaning in reply, he tried to reassure them. “Hold on guys, I’ll help you as quickly as I can. Grim, please defend them, while I handle the rest of the fight.”

Hoping to quickly defeat the monster, Sora fired off a powerful firaga attack. The large fireball immediately homed in on the monster and Sora moved in quickly to follow up the attack with his keyblade. When the fireball hit the monsters head, it rapidly heated the surface of its glass head, which started to glow a bright red. Since the spot was already weakened by the heat, the impact of the following keyblade was enough to completely shatter it. Ink spattered everywhere, soaking the keyblade wielder. Not caring about any of that, Sora quickly hurried over to the injured teens, who had slowly started to help each other get up. They looked stunned at what had happened. Not expecting the small teen to be able to defeat the monster mostly be himself. Before they could vocalize their surprise, Sora had appeared next to them and started to cast healing magic on them.

As Sora casted Cura, vines and clovers manifested and swirled around everyone, even Grim. They all immediately felt refreshed and the pain in Deuce’s ribs and Ace’s arm that was caused by the monsters last attack had started to lighten and eventually vanished completely. Realizing they didn’t need to support each other anymore, the duo quickly sprang apart looking slightly embarrassed about being so close and having to rely on the other. 

“Are you guys alright?” Sora asked in concern. 

“You…were able to defeat that thing. And then you healed us…. Thanks to you we’re fine.” Deuce said, still feeling a weird mix between shocked and in awe. “We can look for that crystal now!”

“Idiot, do you really only think about that. We could have been killed because you so carelessly attacked it…..Well, I guess Sora had it handled, but you were way out of your league over there, Mr. serious.” Ace scolded Deuce. “Anyway, let’s go look for that magic crystal now….”

“Hmmm? What’s this?” Grim asked while he was looking at something on the ground. It seemed to be some kind of pitch-black stone. The cat sniffed at it. “This thing smells really good…”

“Is that some kind of remnant from the ink monster?” Deuce questioned and moved closer to get a proper look. However, Grim didn’t feel like waiting and swallowed the thing whole. 

“No way! Don’t just eat random junk from the ground!” Ace uttered bewildered at the cat’s actions.

Grim paid no attention to this and seemed to greatly enjoy his snack. “D…D-d-d-d-d….DELICIOUS!! It’s full-bodied, but also rich, with an aromatic sweetness that blooms in my mouth…Like a whole field of flowers in my mouth!”

“Bleeeeegh. Monsters really do have different tastes than us.” Ace observed slightly disgusted by the cat.

“….Uh, I guess. But he seems to like it, so…” Sora remarked. 

After that short detour, Deuce reminded them that they should continue their search for a magic crystal. They moved farther along the tunnel into the direction the monster had come from. Eventually the tunnel opened up into a larger cavern. Multiple gems were stacked up in a corner. Atop the stack a shining gem could be found. It emitted a soft glow, even as Sora picked it up.

“Hey, Guys! I think this is what we’re looking for. Take a look.” He presented the gem to the others. 

“Yes, that’s it! A magic Crystal! We did it!” Deuce cheered after taking the gem from Sora and looking it over. 

“Victory high-five!” Sora said as he held up his right hand. Unable to resist because of the good mood that had settled in, everyone joined in the high five. Even Grim. “I’m glad you’re all getting along so well now! We’re gonna be great friends!” Sora added.

“….Ah. N-no. This is nothing like that!” Deuce protested.

“Y-yeah, yeah! Could you stop saying weird things? I would never be friends with a guy like that.” Ace protested as well.

“eh, so you do want to be friends with me then?” Sora teased the orange-head. 

“I-I guess….You seem like a cool guy….and you did save our neck out there.” Ace uttered a bit embarrassed. His face had suddenly turned rather red as well. 

“…True. We got the magic crystal because you managed to defeat that monster. We can prevent our expulsion this way…..I’m so relieved….. and it’s all thanks to you.” Deuce said to Sora. 

Sora smiled brightly at them. “It’s thanks to our teamwork. Without your initial attacks I couldn’t have defeated him so quickly. I’m just glad everyone is alright.”

“Yeah, yeah. We’re all relieved. Let’s go home now. There’s nothing left here for us to do.” Ace suggested, still slightly red in his face. They all agreed and made their way out of the mine. While walking, Deuce asked the question they all had been thinking for a while now.

“Hey, Sora. What was that key-shaped weapon that you summoned. Is that your unique magic?” 

“It’s a keyblade. I don’t really know what unique magic is, but I’m not the only person who can summon it, so it’s not unique to me. But only certain people can do it so….uh…it is a pretty unique power…..” Sora trailed off, not knowing what more to say to explain it without mentioning the existence of other worlds and the keyblade wars. However, he was saved from having to say anything else by their arrival at the mirror.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am actually quite happy with this chapter and I hope I managed to portray the characters correctly. I rather liked deviating from canon with this as well as the whole interaction with Jade, Jack, Epel and Sora. Some of Epel’s dialogue is based on one of Epel’s personal stories, the SR Ceremonial Robes story “Macarons”, which I found rather funny while reading and inspired me to write part of their interaction. 
> 
> And for those who are curious, up until now Sora didn’t use his keyblade to cast magic, but used his hands to aim and shoot the attacks from. My idea was that keyblade wielders could cast magic without their keyblade as a focus, especially powerful keyblade wielders would have an easier time, but that their attack would be significantly weaker casts that way compared to when using a keyblade as a conduit. But it would still be powerful enough coming from a post-KH III Sora in the situations he had been up till the final battle of this chapter. That he hadn’t used his keyblade before has nothing to do with caution about it being seen, but more with slight laziness and not seeing the need to use it. In my opinion he doesn’t think he shouldn’t use his keyblade in an unknow world, since he has always used his keyblade right from the start in every world he has been to and it had never lead to any troubles as far as Sora believes. 
> 
> What do you like more. A shorter chapter (around 2K words), but more frequent updates, or a longer chapter (5k-10k words), but less frequent updates? I don’t mind doing either and have done both at least once now, but I would like to hear your opinion.
> 
> I want to thank:
> 
> \- Shel_BB  
> \- AmiYoshiko  
> \- Kanade Musings
> 
> for their translations. Without them, I wouldn’t have been able to write this.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh wow, I really hadn’t expected to pass 80 kudos already. Thank you so much for the love of this story! It greatly motivates me to get the next chapter on here as quickly as I can.
> 
> Anyway, here’s another chapter, which has been beta read by andara16. Enjoy!

As the group made their way out of the mirror into Night Raven College again, they were greeted by the Headmaster, which they had sort of expected. However, he wasn’t the only one waiting for them. A little bit to his left were two people that Sora immediately recognized. 

“Jack! Epel!” The keyblade wielder exclaimed in surprise and rushed towards them. 

“W-wah? What happened to you Sora?! Why are you….” Epel waved his hand at the ink covering the teen. In response, Sora looked at himself and forced out a laugh. Though, he didn’t get the chance to explain his disheveled appearance. The headmaster had noticed the magic crystal that Deuce had been carrying in disbelief and made his way over to them.

“Eh?! You really went to Dwarf’s Mine to find a magic crystal? I really didn’t think…….You did not only go, but you came back with a crystal in hand… I quietly completed the paperwork for your expulsion already…” The headmaster didn’t even look to be ashamed as he admitted his lack of fate in the group of teens, which seemed to infuriate mostly Ace and Grim. However, Deuce and Sora seemed to be disappointed in the man as well. Though, when the headmaster held his hand out to Deuce, the teen still obliged and handed over the crystal. 

While the headmaster was busy examining the crystal, Sora explained that they had run into some trouble in the Dwarf’s Mine. When he mentioned that they had fought and defeated a strange monster made out of ink, the headmasters attention immediately snapped to him. With an uncharacteristically serious voice the Crowley ordered the teen to explain what happened in greater detail, while ushering him towards his office. Jack and Epel, who were curious as well to what their new friend had been up to, managed to talk their way into coming with them as well. 

Thus, as they took their seats in the headmaster’s office, Sora described their ordeal in Dwarf’s mine with Deuce, Ace and Grim filling in parts that Sora had unintentionally left out. The headmaster seemed curious when they described the ink monster, but his interest was piqued even more when Deuce fleshed out Sora’s rather simple description of his keyblade. “Hoh hooooohh. A mysterious monster living in the coal mine. The four of you worked together to defeat it and bring back a magic crystal?”

“W-We didn’t really work together.” Ace sputtered. “It was more like Sora did all the work…”

“We couldn’t have done it without him…” Deuce added while smiling rather subdued at the keyblade wielder. 

“That….That’s not true! We did work together, you guys!” Sora objected passionately and gave the duo a stern look. The teens seemed to slightly wilt under the intensity behind his look.

Naturally, Grim had to add his two cents as well. “Of course it couldn’t have happened without the Great Grim!” The cat puffed out his chest arrogantly at his statement. Which resulted in a soft reprimanding boop to his nose from Sora.

“Oooh….Ooooh…..OOOOOOHHHH! OOOOOOOHHH!” And Crowley suddenly burst into tears? His sudden action caused everyone to look at him with varying degrees of bewilderment. Grim even asked what was wrong with the man, not used to seeing an adult burst into tears. However, the teens had no idea what was going on as well and were unable to answer. The man’s tears slowly trickled to a stop as he explained himself. 

“In all these years that I’ve been Headmaster…..For the day to come that students from Night Raven College to go hand-in-hand to face and defeat their enemy!” He said as he stood up and walked around his desk to approach Sora. Towering over Sora, the headmaster leaned even closer to the teen, not caring for his personal space. The keyblade wielder seemed slightly uncomfortable at his action, but didn’t remark on it. However, the other teens in the room seemed to be a bit peeved and especially the more unruly ones were only just about able to stop themselves from intervening. 

“And you, Sora! What a surprising power you poses! Would you be willing to demonstrate it here? I’m rather curious, you see. Is this the power that….“ The last part was muttered softly under his breath, but Sora being so close was still able to make out some of it. 

Not understanding the headmaster’s fascination with his keyblade, but hoping to escape the rather awkward position he was in now, Sora quickly agreed. At his agreement, the headmaster’s expression seemed to brighten significantly and he moved a few steps away from Sora. Probably to give the teen the space to do whatever he needed to do. Even though they didn’t agree with the creepy way that the headmaster had requested it, the others present still leaned a bit closer to get a better view. Epel and Jack were quite excited to see the special power that was able to easily defeat what was described as a rather powerful monster, while Ace and Deuce were just curious to see it while they weren’t in danger of dying anytime soon…. Grim didn’t care that much, but still wanted to see what was so special about that stupid key that had everyone clamoring to get a good look at it.

At everyone’s expectant look Sora raised his right hand and summoned the kingdom key into it. He showed it to everyone, starting with the headmaster, but when the man wanted to reach out to touch it, Sora dissuaded him from the notion. He lied that it could be dangerous for someone that was not bonded to it to touch it. He didn’t want to explain that by touching it he could unwillingly bequeath the power of the keyblade to that person. He didn’t know the specifics of how that worked, but he really didn’t want to cause a mess by doing it accidentally. Or risk someone with not so innocent intentions getting their hands on a keyblade. 

After everyone had their fill of seeing the keyblade, he unsummoned it. Meanwhile, the headmaster had been muttering to himself. It was so quiet Sora could only make out a few fragmented sentences, which didn’t really make sense. “I might have…….This could be…..Xehan-….” 

The last word he heard, shocked him slightly. That sounded a lot like Xehanort! Could he really be talking about him….Of course it could always be a coincidence. There are probably a lot of words and names that have Xehan in it….. Sora tried to reassure himself. The approach of the headmaster, who had been leaning against his desk during the demonstration, shook the teen from his thoughts. The headmaster suddenly grabbed the teens hands. 

“I’m overwhelmed with emotion. This incident confirms it. Sora. Without a doubt, you have a talent as a beast tamer.” At everyone’s bewildered looks, the headmaster released Sora and explained further, while gesturing at the students in the room. “Students of Night Raven College are budding wizards called here by the dark mirror. However, they are of a superior class that makes them prideful and vain people that have not even the slightest inkling to work with others. Let alone acknowledge that someone else is better than them at something. Making many of them selfish and self-centered.” 

At this declaration the students seemed to be a bit offended and Jack was the first to voice his displeasure. “You’re really not saying anything nice about us, you know.”

Choosing to ignore Jack’s remark the Headmaster continued his monologue. “Helping these troublemakers without any though to yourself. That’s truly special for the students here. But, maybe, precisely because your selflessness and your kindness, you could teach these wizards to cooperate with each other. You were already able to tame that unruly cat monster and you got those troublemakers that couldn’t stand each other to somehow work together. If that isn’t a result of your selflessness and your kindness, I don’t know what is. Perhaps you are exactly what this school needs right now!”

Ace seemed to grudgingly agree with the headmaster. “Even though we haven’t known you for long, that sure sounds a lot like you, Sora.”

“I think Sora is very kind as well. And he must be really special if he gets two bickering idiots to even consider working together…..” Epel added, taking a jab at the troublesome duo. He was quite peeved at the trouble they had caused for the young keyblade wielder.

“Sora, I have no doubt that your existence is essential to the future of this academy. So says my educator-senses.” The headmaster then addresses Grim, Ace and Deuce. “Trappola, Spade, Grim. Along with rescinding your expulsion I shall give Grim the qualifications to attend Night Raven College as a student!”

His statement shocked everyone, most of all Grim. While they had expected the headmaster to let the cat stay, they didn’t think he would ever consider letting the cat become a student. 

“Even though he’s a cat? How is that possible?” Epel asked the headmaster in surprise.

“Yes. For I am exceedingly gracious. But, there is one condition. You don’t ever let an incident like today or even yesterday occur again! And Sora will have to supervise you and make sure that doesn’t happen. Do we have an agreement?”

“Ffgna!? I….I can got to this academy too? Fffnaaa…… Of course the great Grim agrees!” The cat seemed unable to contain his joy and started to bounce around in place. 

“That’s great, Grim! Let’s do our best together.” Sora said after he had agreed to keep an eye on the cat monster.

“Well then, I shall give the symbol of your status as a student of Night Raven College, a magical crystal, to Grim.” The headmaster went around to his desk and pulled a small, light purple magic crystal from a drawer. Then he attached it to a small chain and handed it over to Sora. At Sora’s gesture, the cat moved towards him and allowed the teen to place the chain around his neck. The crystal ended up resting against his white, fluffy breast. 

“Whoa! A magic crystal?” Grim said in wonder and briefly touched the crystal with his paw.  
“It’s the norm for students to have their magic crystals in the form of a ‘magic pen’, but you wouldn’t be able to grip it in your paws, right? It’s a special custom. Aaaah…I pay attention to even the smallest details! Aren’t I too gracious?”

All the talk of magic pens and magical crystals made Deuce realize something. He hadn’t seen Sora use his pen to cast magic at all. He decided to voice his thoughts. “But Sora doesn’t seem to use his pen to cast magic, sir. How is he able to cast magic……and for that matter, Grim casts his fire without one as well.”

At this question, the teens alternated between looking at the headmaster and at Sora, waiting for whoever would answer the teen’s question first. However, Sora didn’t really seem to know the answer himself. He just knew that he was able to do it. Fortunately, the headmaster did have an answer.

“Oh, that just means that both know the spells they use well enough to not need a focus to cast them. But you did say that Sora used that keyblade to cast magic in Dwarf’s mine, right. It shows that that would be his main focus, like some students use a staff. And when he used it, I take it his magic was far more powerful than whatever he cast without it. Foci, like magic pens are usually used to help people focus their magic, making it easier to cast spells. You probably cast some magic without a focus as a child as well, mostly accidentally. It’s quite similar.” The headmaster explained to his captivated audience. 

Jack was the first to react to this revelation. “Wow, Sora that sounds amazing. You are way ahead of us first years magic wise, aren’t you?” He sounded really excited, his tail even wagging in response to his mood. 

Sora, not used to getting compliments like that, especially school related ones, turned slightly red in embarrassment. “E-eh, I-I guess? I’ve got a lot of practice using certain spells in the past, but I expect I won’t be that great on the theory….”

His words seem to surprise everyone around him. In what situation would he have used a lot of advanced battle magic like those elemental spells he had been throwing around… Contemplating what kind of past the small teen could have had before coming here, silence settled over the room like a blanket. Sora was twitching a bit in place. Had he said something wrong?

Then Deuce suddenly broke the silence with another well thought out remark. “Huh, there’s only the two of you in your dorm….So if you’ve been entrusted with supervising Grim, that makes you a dorm leader, doesn’t it?”

“Eh, a dorm leader of a two person dorm…..Isn’t that unheard of?” Ace said, but blushed quickly after these words left his mouth. “W-well, I guess, you’ll probably do a good job…” He quickly added.

“You were already unofficial the dorm leader of Ramshackle dorm, but we’ll make it official with the addition of Grim. That means that you will need to attend the planned dorm leader meetings as well. I’ll instruct one of the other dorm leaders to escort you to the first meeting and show you the ropes. Ahem, I do have another request. I entrust you with this… This is nicknamed the ‘ghost camera’.” The headmaster said as he revealed a somewhat old fashioned camera, which he handed to Sora. 

The teen looked rather confused at it, not understanding why the man would hand him a camera. Even if it is called something strange like a ghost camera. “Um, thank you? What do you want me to do with this?” 

Before the headmaster could respond, the orange-head butted in. “Ah, I think my grandma told me about that. It’s a super old magic tool, right?”

“It is not ‘super old’.” The man said sounding rather offended. “…..ahem It’s true this may have been invented during your great grandmother’s or great-great grandmother’s time. There is a very special spell cast on it. It not only captures the subjects form, but also part of their soul.”

“A part of their soul?!” Deuce and Sora shouted in unison. 

“We call this ‘Memory: A fragment of remembrance’. Furthermore, the most interesting part of this magic camera is that the soul of the photographer and the photographed become deeply connected and the memory in the photo comes jumping out!”

“Souls …..that are connected? Like hearts….” Sora mused quietly under his breath. 

When it looked like Crowley had everyone’s attention again - though he seemed to pay more attention to whether he had Sora’s than the others’ - he resumed his explanation. “Depending on how close the subject and the photographer are, the picture could move like a video, or bring to life the situation in the photo. Fascinating, right?”

“It brings the photo to life?! That sounds like a ghost photograph!” Jack exclaimed.

“Yes. Therefore it is called a ‘ghost camera’. They say it was made before the time of videos for when people wanted to leave behind vivid memories…..Mr. Howl was correct; in the past, people would scream “ghost!” in surprise when the memory came jumping out. They were paralyzed with fear at the thought of having a photo taken with this camera.”

“Hehe. A camera for freaking people out!” Ace joked, but got a stern look from the headmaster in return, shutting the teen up quickly. 

“Dorm leader Sora, please take photos of Grim and the other students to leave behind many memories of your lives in the academy.” The man ordered the keyblade wielder. At the seriousness of his tone, the teen almost made to salute, but refrained at the last moment. Thus, his hand was hanging awkwardly in the air, which of course got some strange looks from the others. He just couldn’t help himself, okay. At the moment the headmaster just sounded too much like master Yen Sid for his comfort. 

“….Especially, always make sure to get “Memories” when someone steps out of line. It’s a most suitable way to report to me, right? Keep an eye on your surroundings and take memories while you enjoy your school days here.” The headmaster continued with the same seriousness. However, the joyous faces of most of the teens disappeared as what the man insinuated sank in. Not caring for the abrupt mood change he had caused, he finished with a cold smile. “Giving you this rather special item……Does my graciousness know no bounds?”

Sora, for once not oblivious to what had caused the sudden mood change, decided to play along with the headmaster. “Thank you, headmaster. I’ll promise I will take a lot of photos of my friends~!” 

A shiver went down everyone’s spine at the keyblade wielder’s tone. Especially Deuce’s and Ace’s, already a bit familiar with Sora’s strange humor. However, Crowley gave him an approving look and a small smile.

“It is already late. Return to your dormitories, everyone.” The headmaster shooed everyone out of his office, not even giving the teens the time to say goodnight to him. The five teens shared an amused look as they made their way down one of the many hallways on the second floor. Deuce and Ace seemed rather exhausted from everything that had happened that afternoon, but also slightly relieved. 

“Haaaah….. Expulsion rescinded… I’m beat.” Deuce sighed tiredly as he lightly swayed on his feet. Seeing this, Ace moved over to him and offered his arm, which Deuce wordlessly accepted. Both boys had a slight flush to their faces and refused to look at each other. 

“You did experience quite an adventure……I wish I could have gone too….” Epel said ruefully. 

Grim, who still seemed to have unlimited amounts of energy, pranced around leading the group. “La Laa~! I start as a student of Night Raven College tomorrow! I’m gonna leave you all in the dust and take the top spot!” The cat said with a singsong voice. 

“You talk big for someone who is only accepted to this school because of the headmaster’s pity.” Ace muttered to the cat, not feeling up to arguing anymore. “…..Anyway, it’s fine. Fortunately I won’t have to see your ugly mug all day every day. Since we’re in different classes, we won’t share all of our classes. I wouldn’t mind sharing classes with Sora, though.” He whispered the last part under his breath. However, it was not soft enough to escape anyone’s notice, since everyone except Sora, who was walking at the front of the group with Grim, turned to look at him. Before he could talk his way out of it they had arrived in the hall of mirrors. 

Taking pity on the orange-head, Jack broke the silence. “This is where we part. It was…..sort of nice meeting you, I guess.” He said to Ace and Deuce and then turned to the cat monster. “And don’t make any more trouble for Sora, Grim.” He warned the cat before waving at Sora and Epel, with his tail waging once again. “See ya in class tomorrow!” Jack then disappeared into the large Savanaclaw dorm mirror. 

The next to leave was Epel. But not before saying goodbye to his new friend, ignoring the others. “It was really nice meeting you today, Sora. I would have liked to spent more time with you today….. If some cat didn’t decide to cause trouble…… See you tomorrow.” The small boy waved and left through the Pomefiore dorm mirror.

Then it was up to Deuce and Ace to leave. Deuce removed himself from Ace’s supporting hold and made to stand before sora. He bowed deeply as he thanked the teen. “Thank you again for saving us, dorm leader Sora. I hope to see you tomorrow. Come on Ace, we don’t want to be late for curfew.” The teen said as he made his way through the Heartslabyul mirror. 

“Sure, sure, I’m coming. It was a pleasuuure meeting you today. See you tomorrow, dorm leader~!” Ace said with a cocky grin as he made his way through the mirror as well. 

“Those guys are rather strange. What’s with all those stupid smiles around you. Anyway, those two make a good combo. They’re the ‘fight because they’re so close’ type. We better get back to the dorm as well. Finally! My bright and shiny academy life at Night Raven College will begin tomorrow!” The cat proclaimed as he ran off towards their dorm. Sora not far behind him with a smile on his face. Laughter filling the air.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So that finishes up the prologue! Now it’s on to the Crimson Tyrant~ I’m looking forward to it! I hope you all enjoyed this chapter. I loved writing all those interactions between the characters and I hope I did them justice. 
> 
> I’ve already written a large part of the next chapter and I hope to finish it at the end of the week/beginning next week. 
> 
> I’m actually curious what you think about romance in this story. Should I pair Sora up with someone? Know that I will not be writing smut, but if he ends up in a relation with one (or multiple) people I would love to write some fluffy moments. However, romance will never be the focus of this story. Of course I already have some inkling of what way I want to go with eventual romances, but I would like to hear your opinion anyway. Who would you like Sora to end up with?


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh, wow. This story has almost reached 100 kudos. Thank you so much everyone. When I started writing this, I had never expected to get such a positive response!
> 
> Anyway, here's the next chapter! This is again beta read by my best friend Andara16. Please enjoy! I had so much fun writing this chapter :D

Everything was gray, was the first thing that Sora noticed. He then felt his body move without any input from himself. As his body moved forward, he tried to take in more of his surroundings. Which thankfully he was able to do, since the only part of his body that he could move by himself were his eyes. Looking around, he saw large hedges on either side of him. He was also wearing a blue dress similar to what Alice was wearing in Wonderland?! Though, the most peculiar thing was probably that instead of the expected green, the hedges were colored in gray tones. And upon closer inspection, so was everything else!? Except for himself, it seemed. But why? 

Just as the teen started to panic, a blob of red paint landed before his feet. The bright red color contrasted starkly with all the gray around him. Again, not of his own volition, his body started to jump up and down as it moved along the hedge, seemingly trying to find the source of the paint. As he drew nearer to an opening in the hedge, he could hear voices singing. One of them seemed slightly familiar. Where did he recognize that voice from?

**“Painting the roses red. We’re painting the roses red.”**

To his surprise, three card guards, like the ones he had encountered in wonderland, were singing while painting white roses red. They were so hurried in their painting, that red paint splattered everywhere. However, one of them was not wearing the traditional mask shaped like their corresponding card symbol. Instead, the teen could see slightly shorter than shoulder length, silver hair. Unfortunately, he couldn’t see his face, since the card soldier was standing with his back to him. 

**“We dare not stop, or waste a drop, so let the paint be spread.” The two of clubs was singing.**

Then the other two joined their voices to the other’s. **“We’re painting the roses reeeed. We’re painting the roses red. Oh, painting the roses red.”**

As they seemed to finish their chorus, the silver-haired card turned his head slightly, revealing a familiar face. Was that Riku?! What?! Their eyes met briefly before Riku (?) began to sing again. However, it seemed like he recognized Sora as well, if the slight widening of his eyes could be believed. **“And many a tear be shed, because we know, they’ll cease to grow, in fact, they’ll soon be dead.”**

 **“NOOOO……” The other card soldiers sang.**

Then, Riku resumed singing while keeping eye contact with Sora. The teen showed no signs of having noticed Sora except for the emotion Sora could see in Riku’s eyes. They showed relief, mixed with something else….. was that longing? **“And yet we go ahead, painting the roses red.”**

“Painting the roses red, we’re painting the roses red.” The other card soldiers finished the song and silence settled over the garden again. 

As they stopped singing, they also stopped painting. The white roses on the rose bush they had been working on were now all painted red. 

“Hurry, hurry! There are still some that aren’t painted yet!” Riku exclaimed as the card soldiers hurried towards the next bush. However, before they could start their next paint job, Sora interrupted them. Words left his lips without his permission.

“Why are you painting the white roses red?” 

The card soldiers seemed surprised at his appearance and the subsequent question. The two of clubs is the one to answer his question. “Why, you ask? Well, to tell you the truth, we made a mistake and accidentally planted white roses.”

“The queen loves red, so if she sees white, then it’s off with our heads!” Riku added.

“Is that so..” Sora muttered thoughtfully, his body moving his hand under his chin in a thinking pose.

“Yes it is. That’s exactly why we’re painting them red.” The three of clubs offered. Just as the card soldier said his last words, everything around Sora began to fade to black. The last thing he saw was the wistful look in Riku’s bright blue-green eyes.

~~

Sora woke up feeling groggy and slightly confused. What was he dreaming about just now…..? Something told him that it was about something important, yet he couldn’t seem to recall it. As he tried to remember, he could only drag up the faint impression of bright blue-green eyes that were terribly familiar to him. 

Insistent knocking tore him away from his thoughts, causing Grim, who had been sleeping next to him, to roll over and poke him in his side. “Hey, Sora…. Someone’s¬ at the door….. “ The cat muttered sleepily without even opening his eyes. 

“I’ll see who it is.” Sora assured him, putting a hand over his mouth as he yawned. The teen slowly made his way towards the front door and opened it. To his surprise, Ace was standing there with a familiar collar around his neck looking quite ashamed. It was a heart-shaped, black-and-red collar that fit quite snugly around the teens neck. 

“H-hey, Sora…… Can you let me in for a bit?” 

Sora opened the door further, motioning the other teen inside. The keyblade wielder then led him further into the lounge and offered him a seat on the sofa.

“Ace? Why is he here at this hour….?” Grim muttered as he joined the duo in the lounge. However, as he looked more closely at the orange-head, he finally took notice of the collar adorning his neck. “Geh! What’s with the collar?!”

“Isn’t that the same collar that Riddle guy put on Grim during the opening ceremony?” Sora asked the other teen.

Ace nodded his head in reply and let out a sigh in frustration. “Geez! I’m never returning to Heartslabyul.” He exclaimed exasperated. Then he grabbed both of Sora’s hands and looked at him pleadingly. “Sora! Please let me be a member of this dorm from here on!”

Astonished by the turn of event and not really knowing how to answer, Sora instead asked him what happened. 

“I ate a tart.” Ace simply replied.

“That’s it?” Sora uttered in disbelief. “That seems a bit, uh…..”

“Exactly! Only that! I got hungry, so I went to the dorm’s kitchen. The tart was just sittin’ right there inside the fridge. And like, three whole ones! Then, the dorm leader caught me eating one of the tarts and he suddenly put this collar on me!” Ace explained not even sounding remorseful. 

“You’ve only got yourself to blame.” Grim said sounding quite vindictive. He was probably glad that the teen got into trouble. 

“I actually agree with Grim on this. There were three tarts in there. He was probably saving them for a party and now one of them is gone.” Sora told the teen. 

“B-but ain’t it overreacting to seal my magic just cause I ate his tart?!” Ace tried to defend his actions, not having expected their reactions. “It’s practically the same as tying my hands and my feet! There’s a limit to how heartless he can be!”

Sora did feel a bit sorry for the teen and agreed that the dorm leader might have gone too far. “Even though he might have gone a little too overboard binding your magic like that, he did have a good reason to be mad at you.”

“E-eh? You’re not on my side?! Ugh….. I came here thinking that you’d agree with me about the dorm leader being a little tyrant.” Ace huffed. 

The keyblade wielder smiled apologetically at him as he placed a hand on his arm. “I won’t turn away a friend in need, but eating someone else’s food is not nice, ya know? Let’s go apologize to him tomorrow, okay?”

The orange-head let out a deep sigh. He really didn’t want to see his dorm leader so soon after getting punished, but he did see the brunette’s point. “I get it. I just have to apologize, right? You suggested it, so you better come with me, Sora.” He declared before looking around the room. “Wow, this dorm is completely different from how I expected. The outside looks really…uh…Ya know. Anyway, where can I sleep?” 

“The bedrooms are upstairs. Come on I’ll show you the way.” Sora offered as he stood up. Ace and Grim followed him as he made his way towards his room. “Well, this is my room. All the other rooms on this floor should be clean and ready for use, so you can take your pick.”

Before Sora could enter his room, Ace grabbed his arm. With a mischievous look in his eyes, he pulled the teen closer to him. Sora could have prevented this from happening, but was shocked by the action and just let it happen. “Soraaaa! Let me stay in your room. I’m a pretty handy guy, so I won’t take up much room! We can have a sleep over! Please~? Ace asked while holding the other teen close to him. Sora, not seeing anything with either their close proximity or the request, readily agreed. Of course this delighted Ace, but Grim seemed quite grumpy at the outcome. He didn’t really want to share his human with anyone. Especially with Ace. 

While Ace was busy changing into a spare set of Sora’s pajamas, Sora climbed into his bed. Grim quickly joined him, settling on Sora’s left side, leaving the right side empty for Ace. As Ace returned, Sora had to hold back a laugh that threatened to leave his mouth at the sight of him. Since Sora was a fair bit shorter than Ace, maybe around 10 cm, the sleeves and trouser legs were comically short on the orange-head. Fortunately, the shirt wasn’t too tight and the teen could still move around easily. After he had settled himself on Sora’s free side, the teens and grumpy cat all bid each other good night and went to sleep. 

~~

A couple of hours later, Sora woke up by someone knocking on the front door. Again. There seemed to be some kind of trend going on… Thankfully it was already morning and he felt surprisingly well rested, which was strange considering he lost some sleep because of Ace’s arrival last night. He actually slept rather well after he had gotten back to bed. 

When Sora tried to get up, he noticed something was keeping him down. The teen looked down and to his bewilderment he saw one of Ace’s arms thrown over his chest. The orange-head seemed to have gravitated towards the other teen during the night and was now curled around the keyblade wielder. Not wanting to wake the other teen, Sora tried to carefully slip from under the other’s arm. However, another round of knocking seemed to have woken the other teen before he could accomplish this. Ace’s eyes fluttered open as he slowly returned to wakefulness. 

“What the…. Who the hell’s pounding on the door so early in the morning.” Ace grumbled and made to burrow further into the covers. But before he could fully fall asleep again, he noticed the position he was in. Namely, how he was snuggling up to Sora. As that realization hit him, he immediately shot up in bed feeling slightly mortified. 

“Good morning~!” Sora greeted the other, who was now wide awake and pointedly not looking at Sora. The brunette, however, was clearly oblivious to the others mortified state as he smiled brightly at him. 

“G-good morning?” Ace managed to get out when he dared to look at Sora again. His cheeks were colored a bright red. 

Having enough of their dawdling, Grim interrupted them. “Funya! Why won’t someone open the door! The great Grim is trying to sleep here!” 

Seeing the opportunity to escape before he embarrassed himself even more, Ace offered to check it out. Before Sora could even reply, Ace had already fled from the room, leaving a confused keyblade wielder behind on the bed. The teen blinked a couple of times, still trying to understand what had happened. His curiosity then urged him to go investigate who was at their door so early in the morning.

As Sora entered the foyer, he could see Deuce standing next to Ace. Ace was just asking him what he was doing there when Sora arrived.

“I heard about the situation from our dormmates. You ate the dorm leader’s tart, so now you’ve got that collar on, haven’t you? You’re an outright idiot.” Deuce admonished the orange-head. 

Which of course seemed to infuriate Ace. “Shut it! I don’t wanna hear that from you! Not after the stunt you pulled yesterday! So…. Is the dorm leader still mad at me…?” The teen asked Deuce sounding hopeful. 

Regretfully Deuce shook his head, before explaining. “Not completely. He’s in an irritated mood and about three people who didn’t follow the waking up routine suffered the same fate as you.”

At this answer, Ace seemed to grow even more angry at his dorm leader. “ _‘Not completely’_ ,” The teen said using air quotes sarcastically. “my ass! He’s totally mad!”

Unwilling to watch from the sidelines any longer, Sora made his presence known by stepping towards the bickering teens. “But that makes it even more important to apologize to him. Maybe it would brighten his mood?” Sora tried to argue. However, he didn’t seem to convince Ace even slightly. 

At his sudden appearance, Deuce turned to him and bowed formally. “Ah, good morning, dorm leader Sora! I hope this idiot didn’t cause you too much trouble.” He finished as he moved out of his bow.

Sora seemed slightly flustered at the unexpected formality of the teen and immediately tried to dissuade him from doing that in the future. “Good morning, Deuce! Please, don’t bow…. And you don’t have to call me so formally! Just Sora, alright!” The brunette finished with a smile.

“A-Alright, dor-… uh…Sora.” The teen corrected himself quickly, not wanting to disappoint his new friend. 

“What are you making so much noise for…” The sleepy cat grumbled as he entered the foyer as well. At his entrance, the teens noticed it was getting quite late. Especially if they still wanted to visit the Heartslabyul dorm before classes started this morning. Therefore, Ace and Sora quickly hurried back upstairs to get ready for the day. Unfortunately, since Ace didn’t get the chance to bring a change of clothes he had to wear his clothes from yesterday. He still tried to make himself presentable by smoothing out any wrinkles he could see. It helped slightly but he still ended up looking a bit disheveled. 

While Ace was trying to smooth out his clothes, Sora was struggling with his tie. Again. He just didn’t get it to sit like he wanted it to. Fortunately, Ace saw his troubles and gently pried the teens hand from the tie and did it for him. The orange-head teased him a bit about how someone of his age should be able to successfully tie a tie, but he still offered to teach it to him later on. As a thank you for letting him stay the night, Ace quickly added. Sora readily agreed, of course. He did not want to run in to his homeroom teacher again with a less than presentable tie. When they had rejoined Deuce, they quickly left for the Heartslabyul dorm. 

~~

Passing through the mirror felt like stepping through a layer of water again. Not quite unpleasant, but also not generally a nice feeling. The magic of the mirror left a faint tingling sensation behind on Sora’s skin. As Sora followed the others he observed the tidy garden that they were travelling through. Rose bushes lined the cobblestone path that lead to a large, red, castle-like building. It looked rather nice and inviting if it wasn’t for the students that hurried towards the mirror, looking like they wanted to be anywhere but here. 

As they walked further into the garden, they could see a teen with shoulder length orange hair, the top portion tied back into a ponytail, green eyes and a small red patch shaped like a diamond under his left eye. He was standing on a ladder facing towards them, turning the white roses of a rose bush red using his magic pen. This scene….. It seemed familiar to the keyblade wielder somehow….. But why…..?

“Whoa! This is super fancy! It’s completely different from our dorm!” Grim remarked watching in wonder at everything around them. 

“Oh, no. I gotta hurry and paint these roses red. If there are some left unpainted, it’s off with my head.” The group heard the unfamiliar student mutter as they drew closer to his location. Feeling a sense of Déjà vu by looking at him, Sora was rather curious about the teen. So he pointed him out to the others and asked them whether they knew who that was and why he was changing the colors of those roses.

“Hm? Did you guys need something?” The unfamiliar teen asked before Sora’s question could be answered.

“What’re you doing?” Ace decided to question him.

“This? As you can see, I’m painting the roses red.”

“Eh!? Why do such a thing?” Deuce responded perplexed.

“Hmmm. Your reactions are so fresh, it’s kinda cute~!” The stranger said instead of answering. “Now that I look at you closely, you guys are the freshies who totally wrecked the 10 mil chandelier and caused a ruckus yesterday.” He remarked casually as he stepped down from his ladder and approached the group. Then his eyes landed on Sora, who was standing slightly behind both Ace and Deuce. “Eh, but who is this cutie~!” He exclaimed as he threw an arm around the keyblade wielder. 

Sora, not really used to strangers getting that handsy so soon after meeting seemed slightly stunned by the other’s action. Okay, he didn’t know Ace and Deuce that long as well, but they were friends now, so he didn’t really mind anymore. “Um….I’m Sora..”

The teen seemed to smirk at his reaction. “Oh, you’re that first year that couldn’t be sorted into any dorm!” 

However, before he could continue, Sora was pulled from his grip by Ace. “Hey! Hands off!” He shouted at the stranger, while moving Sora behind him. 

This seemed to elicit a surprised laugh from the orange haired stranger. “Hm~ Touchy, Touchy! I was just getting to know him better.“ He pouted while holding his hands up in the air in apology. “And you’re the supper sinful kid who stole the dorm leader’s tart. I’m so lucky to meet the rumored freshies so early in the morning!” 

Then, he moved closer to the teens again, holding his phone for them to see. “Hey, hey~! Let’s take a pic together!” However, before the teens could even consider refusing he had already taken a selfie with them. “Hey, can I upload this? I wanna put hashtags so tell me your name.”

Greatly confused by the teens erratic behavior, Ace, Duece and Grim numbly gave him their names. “Alright, upload done~! Oh, I’m Cater Diamond, a 3rd year. That makes me your senior~! Call me Cater, okay? Cate’s fine, too!” Cater informed them after putting his phone away again.

“It’s nice to meet you, Cater!” Sora said with a cheerful wave towards the other.

“No, no, you should call me Cate, cutie~! You’re the new dorm leader of Ramshackle! (“So that’s what it’s called”, mutters Sora quietly) I’m surprised you can live in a place like that. It’s so dark, and I feel like something’s gonna pop out. If you can’t handle staying there anymore, feel free to stay over at my room! I’ll show you a great time.“ Cater said with a wink while leaning closer to Sora. Well, as close as he could get with Ace still standing protectively in front of the brunette. 

“This guy is pretty creepy… “ Grim muttered, peeking out from behind Sora’s leg. 

“Oh, I shouldn’t be standing here and talking!” Cater suddenly exclaimed, abruptly straightening himself. “The party’s the day after tomorrow. It’s off with my head if I’m late.” He then thoughtfully looked at Sora’s group. “Hey, hey, freshies~! Can you help me with painting the flowers?”

His question reminded the group of their as of yet unanswered question, inciting Ace to ask again. “Why’re you doing something so strange?”

“I mean, won’t it be more photogenic if the roses were red for the party~? I’m really busy, because I’m also in charge of coloring the flamingos for the croquet match.”

“Dying the flamingos…..? That’s a pretty weird job.” Grim remarked.

“So I was right!” Sora exclaimed suddenly, realization having just set in. He then turned to Ace. “The tarts were really for a party, right? So that would explain the dorm leader’s anger….”

“The day after tomorrow is our dorm leader’s legendary Unbirthday Party. It’s a tea party that the dorm leader felt like doing, so he chose a day that doesn’t fall on anyone’s birthday.” Cater explained.

However, his explanation seemed to cause even more confusion. “The hell’s that!?” Ace and Deuce exclaimed in unison. 

Though, Cater seemed to ignore them and tried to persuade them into helping him again. “In any case, the reason can wait! You just have to help me paint the roses! Deucy, Grimmy and Sora, you can use magic, right? Acey can’t use magic, so here’s a paintbrush~!”  
As promised, he offered a bucket of paint and a paintbrush to his fellow orange-head, who reluctantly accepted them. 

“Ch-change the colors with magic, you mean…?” Deuce said uncertainly. 

“I haven’t done anything like that before, yanno.” Grim added sounding quite reluctant at admitting there was something he couldn’t do.

“Me neither…..” Sora told the others.

Not really surprised at the first years not knowing something like that yet, he assured them it would be fine. Then he demonstrated how to turn the roses red using magic. The first years watched attentively, even Grim paid attention for once. Having given a general idea of how the spell should be cast, Cater continued turning roses red, while the first years moved on to their own roses to try the spell. Sora was a bit worried about using his magic pen for the first time to cast magic, but he would feel rather silly if he used his keyblade for this. And since the spell was new to him, he also wouldn’t be able to just not use something as a focus. 

Okay, focus, the keyblade wielder told himself. He tried to replicate the same feeling he got when he normally casts magic and focused on the result he wants. Red. This rose should turn red. Then he pointed his pen and released a burst of magic…… and the rose turned purple. He tried again, and this time the rose turned orange. At least he managed to turn the rose into a different color. Now he only had to get it to turn into the correct color….. Unwilling to give up, he kept trying and finally his eighth or was it ninth try resulted in a single red rose! 

Excited and wanting to share his process with the others he turned to look at Deuce next to him. Who was muttering to himself about red roses, but the roses before him were anything but red. It seemed that he hadn’t gotten the hang of it yet. Sora then turned to Grim, to see if the cat was faring any better. Which he was not….. He was facing similar problems to Deuce. Only instead of turning the roses into a different color, the cat seemed to have burned them. The only ones who had made any real progress were of course Cater, who was already quite experienced with the spell, and Ace, who was painting the roses by hand. 

Sora decided to focus on his task instead of worrying about the others. They would surely manage to perform the spell in time. Practice makes perfect after all! And it’s not like he knows the spell well enough himself to offer them any advice. 

His faith in the others was soon proven to be well placed. After working for a bit, he suddenly heard Grim shout in joy. “Behold! I made them all red this time!” As Sora turned to look at the cat’s work, he could indeed see that multiple flowers before him were red now.

“Me, too!” Deuce added with a grin as well, looking proudly at his red roses. 

Hearing the commotion, Cater headed over to them to look at their work. “Amazing~! Just a little more practice and it’ll be perfect~! It will be even better if you imagine the rose turning red while you’re casting your magic. Oh and look at you! Sora, your roses look perfect already~ Quite extraordinary to get the hang of new magic so quickly!” Their senior complimented Sora. 

Ace had joined the group as well and seemed to realize something. “Oh! That’s right! I don’t have time to be standing here! I got something to discuss with the dorm leader. Is he still inside?” Ace asked Cater. 

Cater looked at him considerably. “Hm? I think he should still be there…….By the way, Acey who stole the dorm leader’s tart~ Have you brought some tarts to make up for what you took~?”

Sora covered his face in mortification. “Shoot, we should have tought of that…..” 

Bewildered, Ace looked from Sora to Cater. “Eh? I came straight here, so I got nothing…..”

At this, Cater got a large mischievous grin on his face. “Oh man~!” He sang far too cheerfully. “Izzat so? Then, since Rule #53 of the Queen of Hearts states that ‘you have to replace things that you stole’. I can’t let you back in the dorm.”

“Huh?! What the heck?!” Ace sputtered as he wearily watched Cater coming closer.

As their senior reached for his magic pen, Cater looked far too happy at their predicament. “You have to follow the rules if you’re staying in this dorm. If I let it slide, then it’s off with my head, too. Sorry, but I’ll have you leave before Riddle notices.” He said as he started to point his magic pen at the group.

Shocked at the turn of events, both Ace and Deuce were frozen in place. “Wha- He looks totally serious….! You guys, do something!”

Sora moved to grab both Ace and Deuce by the arm and started pulling them along towards the mirror. “We should just leave, guys.” He said hurriedly to the duo as they stumbled along, still not really moving on their own. Fortunately, Sora’s strength was enough to pull them along, even with them not walking on their own. “It’s almost time for classes anyway. And if it’s against one of his rules, I don’t think dorm leader Riddle would be any happier to see you. You don’t want to get into any more trouble, do you?” The brunette said to urge them to come along with him. He really didn’t want to start a fight over something so ridiculous. 

His words seemed to finally register in the others. Ace was the first one to get a hold of himself. “Ah…That’s….um….” He then sighed sounding rather done with everything. “I guess you’re right.”

Seeing the first years retreating of their own volition, Cater lowered his magic pen. “Oh, I won’t have to chase you out~” He looked really disappointed by that, but cheered up quickly. “Alrighty! Come back when you’ve got a tart~! Well, Sora, you can come back whenever you like” He said with a wink to the keyblade wielder. “Bye-Bye.” He waved at their retreating backs as they made their way out of the Heartslabyul dorm. 

The group, still being led by Sora, quickly made their way through the mirror. Once they arrived in the hall of mirrors again, the keyblade wielder released the others’ hands. 

“What’s with that guy?” Ace muttered angrily. “I can’t get back in without a tart, right? I’ve been empty-handed since forever, man. He tried to kick us out after he made us help with the flowers, too!”

Deuce tried to cool the orange-heads temper and offered him a smile. “Then, we’ll have to prepare some tarts to make up for it. After school would be- AH!!” Deuce suddenly exclaimed when he noticed what time it was. “This is bad, it’s way past call time! We’re going to be late! 

Everyone seemed to get worried at the thought of being late on their first official day. They hurried through the school towards the hallway with most of their classrooms. Grim, not able to keep up with his short legs, had hitched a ride on Sora’s shoulder. “The first day of my shining school life will not be tarnished! Let’s hurry towards the classroom!” The cat ordered.

“Speaking of, you’re in 1-B, right?” Ace asked the brunette. Sora nodded in agreement. “We’ll have a joint magical alchemy class then.”

“Nice!” Sora said with a big grin, invoking a smile on the others’ faces as well.

“Yahoo! That sounds fun! Even if it has to be together with you two….” Grim added.

Ace suddenly stopped, his face paling several shades. “E-eh…I can’t use magic, remember? Am I gonna be okay….?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So the song I used in the dream sequence at the beginning of this chapter is obviously from the original Alice movie. I thought it suited the scene a lot more than the short fragment that was used in the original scene from the game. 
> 
> Did you like the surprise appearance of Riku in this chapter? Were any of you expecting it? I did already add him to my tags, so for those of you who are observant might have known that I would try to add him some way. I had been planning to add him through dreams when I found out that in the Re:mind Limit cut episode the fairy godmother suggested to Riku that the key to finding Sora might be in his dreams, due to Riku’s time in Sora’s dreams. So I thought it fitting to add him like this :D
> 
> I had so much fun writing Cater this chapter. His character is just so cheerful and flirty! 
> 
> And thank you everyone for your advice on who to ship Sora with. I was actually leaning towards multi pairing and seeing that most of you who commented also suggested this makes want to just go for it! It won’t include all males, but I already have some ideas how I want to start this and with who to start. It will probably be a bit of a slow burn, but I hope it won’t be to bad a with all the fluff and flirting I have planned in the meanwhile.


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hehe, so I totally wanted to post this for Christmas, but both me and my beta were quite busy during the holidays, so this chapter wasn’t finished until today. To make up for it, here’s a longer chapter than normal! Anyway I wish you a happy (late) holidays. 
> 
> This is again beta read by my best friend Andara16, who I’m really grateful to, since she always managed to catch a lot of my mistakes. Well, that’s what you get for writing most of this between 11 pm and 2 am….. (my favorite times to write XD )
> 
> Hope you enjoy this chapter! Thank you everyone from leaving kudos or commenting. You really make my day and keep me motivated to continue writing!

A shrill bell rang loud through the school as Sora, Ace and Deuce crossed the threshold of their classroom. This earned them a disapproving look from their teacher. Not wanting to anger the man any further, the trio hurriedly put on their personal lab coat, which was required for this class and started to look for a seat. Ace and Deuce quickly took the two closest available seats, which were next to each other. However, they did not look pleased to be sitting next to each other, having hoped to sit next to the keyblade wielder instead.

Sora started to panic a bit at not seeing another free seat as he scanned the room and feeling his teacher’s heated gaze on him. Fortunately, his other friends had thought of him. They waved him towards a seat between them that they had apparently saved for him. Giving them a bright smile, he thanked them and slipped into the seat.

As master Crewel made his way to the center of the room, the young keyblade wielder took the time to look around the room in curiosity. It was really different from the classrooms he was used to. First, the room was circular, instead of the usual rectangular or square classroom shape, and the desks were placed in a half circle facing the large cauldron in the middle of the room. The walls were adorned with shelves filled to the brim with all sorts of strange potion ingredients. Some jars even had eyeballs floating in them. The teen really hoped that they weren’t human…..

Master Crewel gave his class a thorough once over before he called his students to attention, pausing on some students with a considering look, while giving others a harsh glare. “I see some fresh new faces will be joining the puppies from my homeroom today. Hm, what an unusual hair colors. Not bad at all, I say. For the puppies who did not pay attention yesterday, my name is Divus Crewel, but you shall refer to me as Master Crewel, if you please.” He introduced himself as he walked around the classroom. “Before we start class, I’ll give you a few disclaimers. I shall have your tiny brains remember hundreds of names of medicinal herbs and poisonous plants and mushrooms. I’ll have you remember them so that you don’t accidentally poison yourself if you eat some when you go for a walk. Dogs love to eat anything they see after all.” Their teacher added the last part with a barely suppressed smirk. “I don’t want to see anyone getting a failing mark during the exam, so I shall be as strict as I can.”

As their teacher finished speaking, Sora could hear hushed words being exchanged between Ace and Deuce. Unfortunately, Sora wasn’t the only one to hear them, since they weren’t exactly being as quiet as they thought. They received a look in warning from master Crewel, which immediately shut them up. They actually looked a bit afraid of the man. It was good to see that they had at least some survival instinct.

“If it’s grass, we just have to figure out if it’s delicious or not, yanno?” Grim muttered under his breath. To Sora’s relieve he did it quietly enough not to garner their teachers attention.

The next one and a half hour passed with master Crewel lecturing them about some poisonous mushrooms and how to recognize them. He focused the most on death caps, also known as _Amanita phalloides_ , and Ivory funnel, also known as _Clitocybe dealbata_. The first one resembled several edible species and was therefore often the cause of accidental poisoning. Furthermore, it was one of the most poisonous of all known mushrooms and as little as half a mushroom contained enough toxin to kill and adult human. However, outside of its obvious use in poisons, it was also often used in antidotes for multiple types of mushroom-based poisons. The second was a small white funnel-shaped toadstool that was widely found in lawns, meadows and other grassy areas. It could cause cardiac arrest and nerve damage when ingested. However, it was commonly used in restorative potions to heal loss of vision, if it’s caused by damage to the optic nerve, and other nerve damage related injuries. Some potions that used this toadstool were even able to regrow damaged nerves completely.

As Sora tried to take in all the unfamiliar information, he took frantic notes. He really didn’t want to miss anything and he kind of wanted to try his best at being a student this time. It actually sounded interesting what his teacher was talking about, unlike the general classes he used to follow back at Destiny island. And even though master Crewel was a really frightening man, he was actually a surprisingly good teacher and explained everything thoroughly. His passion for the subject clearly shone through as he taught their Alchemy class.

After giving them their homework assignments, Crewel dismissed the class. As students made their way out of the room, Sora caught the attention of Ace and Deuce. Since they wouldn’t share the next class, and Sora wanted to quickly talk with his homeroom teacher, he waved at them and motioned for them to just go to their next class.

He, Epel and Jack shared a look. They had already discussed wanting to talk to their teacher about school clubs, so they were all in agreement to talk to the man now. Fortunately, Grim didn’t mind and promised to stay quite (since the man seemed to frighten the cat quite a bit). As they approached the man, he gave Sora an approving once over, seeing that his tie was done correctly this time. The three of them asked their question and Crewel explained that club sign up would last this whole week, so that students could visit multiple clubs before making their decision. He also told them where the club rooms were for the clubs that they were interested in before shooing them out of the room, warning them not to be late to the next class, or else….

Taking heed of the warning, the group hurried out of the room and made their way to the next class. Fortunately, they arrived in their classroom with time to spare. The room was split into three rows of four desks on both sides with the teacher’s desk before a blackboard at the far end of the room. To the surprise of the teens the desk was occupied by a black cat sitting between two piles of books.

As Sora took a seat at the front row, Grim jumped up on his desk and Epel and Jack sat down on either side of him. The last place on their row was taken by a green haired Diasomnia student. Their teacher, who had been sitting behind his desk petting his cat, stood up as the last student had taken their seat.

“I am Trein, the professor in charge of Magical History. And this is my familiar Lucius.” The man said as he stroked the cat’s head, who purred approvingly in response. “I shall have you learn the history behind the magic that you are using now.” As he paused for a moment, his familiar Lucius filled the silence by meowing. “I do not only grade by your reports, but also by how you behave in my classroom. I will not tolerate sleeping in class. Now then, please turn to page 5 of your textbooks. This is related to the magic stone that was discovered inside the Dwarf Mines.” Their teacher ordered.

At hearing the familiar name, Sora perked up. However, even though the keyblade wielder was really interested in the subject, the monotonous voice of their teacher paired with the meowing at constant intervals almost lulled him to sleep several times. A jab in the ribs from Jack was the only thing keeping him from that unfortunate fate. Though, looking at Epel and Jack, he noticed that they also had trouble paying attention. Jack seemed to handle it the best out of the three of them. Even while keeping Sora from falling asleep, he was able to take notes at a consistent pace. Determined, Sora tried his best to take notes as well. Which sort of worked…. He thought he got the gist of most of it. And hopefully Jack was willing to explain whatever he didn’t understand. During the lecture, Grim quietly complained how boring it was for a while. He didn’t even fight the grip of sleep and was softly snoring soon after. Fortunately, it was quiet enough so that their teacher was unable to notice the sound.

As the quartet left the room after class had finished, Sora yawned rather loudly with his hand covering his mouth, while Jack stretched his arms, letting out a content sight at the sensation. Epel stumbled alongside the duo, still rather dazed from all the knowledge they had to absorb in such a short amount of time, and Grim was walking energetically before the group with a swing to his steps.

Thankfully, they were able to recover a bit before their next class, since it was lunch time now. Grim especially seemed to really look forward to it. “Yeah! It’s finally lunch time!” The cat exclaimed as they neared the cafeteria. “I can already smell all the delicious stuff there!”

However, as they entered the cafeteria and made to head for the buffet line, Epel was suddenly pulled away by a blond haired Pomefiore student wearing a hat. Epel tried to resist at first, but after catching sight of the other’s grin he obediently moved along with only an apologetic side long glance at his friends. Sora and Jack watched it all happen in bewilderment, unsure whether they should interfere. After seeing Epel going along with it, Jack decide to let it be. Sora still moved to interfere, however Jack explained to the teen that it would be better to stay out of the business of other dorms and if Epel really needed their help, he would surely have asked for it. The wolf eared teen did not mention that the others presence caused his hair to stand on end, which was telling him not to cross the guy. At this Sora lets out a sigh and turned away to resume their track to get food.

Grabbing their food actually took longer than expected. Since Grim demanded a lot of food, Sora had to negotiate with the cat to bring the amount of dishes down to two. He finally settled on only getting a fluffy omelet and grilled chicken. After also grabbing his own food, Sora looked around the room for a place to sit. As he saw Ace and Deuce already seated at a table, the keyblade wielder grabbed Jack’s arm, making sure not to disturb the trays both of them were holding, and pulled him along.

“Hi guys! You remember Jack from yesterday, right?” Sora greeted as he and Jack plopped down on the bench across from the Heartslabyul duo. Surprised, but happy at their appearance, the others returned the greeting. Curious about how the others’ classes went, the keyblade wielder asked Ace and Deuce. In reply Ace complained how boring it was, but that he was thankful that they didn’t need to use any magic yet. Deuce explained a bit more thoroughly about the subject of their class, which was magic theory, before asking Jack and Sora the same question. Of course, Grim had to complain about how boring it was as well and how he really wanted to learn some awesome spells. Wanting a more useful answer, Deuce turned to the other two from 1-B. Knowing that the other teen had paid more attention, Sora let Jack explain. Afterwards they made some more small talk and Ace asked where Epel was. Thus, Sora relayed the surprising incident that had occurred as they entered the cafeteria.

As the subject of the dorms came up, Cater and an unfamiliar green haired Heartslabyul students approached their table and took a seat. Cater sat down next to Sora and immediately threw an arm around the teens shoulder, while the other took a seat next to Deuce, which incidentally was across from Cater. Sora stiffened slightly at the unexpected contact, but relaxed swiftly. Cater, however, received glares from Sora’s friends at his action, though it did not seem to bother him in the slightest. He actually seemed to enjoy getting a rise out of them.

“You’ve seen the statues of the Great Seven by the main street, right?” Cater asked and at their nod he continued. “This school has seven dorms based off of them.”

“Oh!” Sora exclaimed in excitement. “That’s what Jade explained to us yesterday. You’ve got Savanaclaw, Pomefiore, Octavinelle, obviously Heartslabyul and … and …. um….?”

“Huh, you’ve had one of the Leech twins as your tour guide yesterday…..luckily it was the least troublesome one!” Cater mutters the last sentence under his breath, too low for anyone but Jack to hear, who gave him a strange look in response. ”The dorms you didn’t mention are Ignihide, Scarabia and Diasomnia.”

“Ugh…You’re the dude from this morning!” Ace whined, not happy to see their senior.

“He’s the guy who tricked us in painting the roses red!” Grim accused as he pointed a paw at the teen in question.

The accused teen didn’t seem bothered at all. No, just the opposite even. With a bright smile on his face he turned to Grim. “I didn’t trick you, you know? It’s not like I wanted to do that either. I only did it ‘cause it’s the dorm’s rules.” He said unapologetically.

Feeling really lost, Jack looked around at the others, just now taking notice of the collar around Ace’s neck. “What the heck happened this morning to you guys and why do you have that collar around your neck?”

Sora explained the situation to the wolf eared teen. As the story went on Jack’s face turned more and more incredulous. Afterwards, he told Ace that he really got what he deserved for stealing. Especially when it was from your dorm leader. He should be happy that getting cut off from his magic was the only punishment he received.

When Deuce cautiously added that Cater looked really happy to be kicking them out, their senior waved it off. “There, there Deucey. The rules don’t matter outside the dorms, so Cate here is just your very gentle senior.”

Deuce turned slightly red at hearing the nickname. “P-please stop calling me that, senior Cater!” The teen sputtered.

Then the green-haired teen, who had up until now remained silent, gave a small laugh. “That’s how Cater expresses his affection, you know?”

Ace looked to him in surprise and suspicion. “Wait… Who are you?”

At the orange-heads reaction, the green haired teen gave a disarming smile. “Oops, my bad. My name’s Trey, Trey Clover. I’m a Heartslabyul third year alongside Cater.” He then turns to Sora. “You’re from Ramshac-“ He clears his throat before continuing. “The new student who’s currently residing in the unused dorm, correct?” Sora nods in reply. “I heard all about it from Cater. Sorry for the trouble our dormmates caused you yesterday.”

This seemed to agitate Ace and Deuce. However, Sora cheerfully replied before either teen could retort. “Nice to meet you! The name’s Sora. And they didn’t drag me in any worse trouble than I usually get dragged in….” Sora’s mood seemed to drop suddenly as he said that.

Cater decided to change the topic to hopefully cheer the other teen up. “Hey! Hey! Since we’re in the same school, let’s exchange numbers and all get along!” He said as he leaned closer to the brunette, which he still had one arm around.

However, to Cater’s disappointment and shock, Sora explained that his phone was acting up and wasn’t able to get a signal since he had arrived at Night Raven College. Trey suggested that the keyblade wielder should let one of the Ignihide students look at it. They’re usually very good with technology and might find what’s wrong.

Noticing the increasingly more irritated looks from the other first years at the continued close proximity between keyblade wielder and third year student, Trey decided to intervene before a fight could break out.

“Cater, leave the newbie alone. You don’t want to frighten him of our presence, do you?” He asked with a pointed look at the arm around the younger teen’s shoulders.

“Ahaha! Sorry, sorry~!” Cater laughed unapologetically as he removed his arm to the slight disappointment of the keyblade wielder, who was actually a rather tactile person and enjoyed the contact. However, it relieved the other first years immensely. “So, you guys were asking about the Dorms? That’s nice! A fresh convo! Big bro here will tell you everything~!”

“I wanna know about our dorm first and foremost. What the heck is that rule number something-something of the Queen of Hearts?” Ace asked.

“I’m sure you’re all familiar with the legendary Queen of Hearts, right? In order to establish absolute law and order, she made severe rules in order to oppress the eccentric citizens of Wonderland.” Trey explained.

“And out of respect for the Queen of Hearts, our Heartslabyul dorm wears red and black in order to represent the dress she wore. And it’s part of our traditions to adhere to the Queen of Hearts’ rule.” Cater added.

Sora was actually rather surprised at their explanation. He voiced his thoughts carefully, a bit unsure whether it would be okay to say. “But didn’t she… um… like behead everyone that was caught breaking one of her laws?”

Not bothered by the question or the topic they were talking about, Cater casually remarked. “That’s why riddle’s perfect to be our dorm leader~ His unique magic ‘Off with your head’ resembles the queens punishment almost to a T.”

The keyblade wielder didn’t really see how cutting off someone’s head was in any way the same as cutting of someone’s magic temporarily. At seeing the teen’s confusion, Trey tried to explain Cater’s statement. “To a wizard, losing one’s magic feels like losing your head.”

“Though, adhering to the rules so strictly is the present dorm leader’s whims. The previous one was kinda chill about it.” Cater complained.

“Compared to the other dorm leaders, Riddle is a bit more serious. That’s why he’s trying so hard to keep traditions.” Trey tried to explain away his dorm leader’s behavior.

However, this explanation seemed to further irritate Ace. “Ugh…How annoying….” He muttered, still pissed at the dorm leader.

Jack tried to steer the conversation back on track before the orange-head could go on another rant about the unfairness of his punishment. The Savanaclaw student was actually rather interested in the other dorms. “What are the other dorms like?” He asked Trey.

“Well, first is Heartslabyul, which we already explained. The second is Savanaclaw, which you are from. Savanaclaw students tend to excel in athletics and martial arts. You can recognize them with their yellow and black colors.” Trey explained as he pointed to the yellow-and-black ribbon around Jack’s arm.

“Oh! Then what about the gray and uh…. Light purple?” Grim asked after looking around the room.

“They’re from Octavinelle. And the ones over there with the dark red and gold colors are from Scarabia.” Trey explained as he pointed to Kalim and a dark skinned student with a red hoody under his uniform jacket.

“It’s been said that both dorms are full of smart people. When it comes to written tests, nothing can beat those two. Ah, but Scarabia’s dorm leader’s only so-so when it comes to studying….” Cater trailed off.

“Octavinelle’s dorm is located under water and is host to a café, called Mostro Lounge. It’s very popular with a lot of the students here.” Trey continued.

“W-Wah! It’s underwater. How can the students breath?!” Jack exclaimed in surprise. The other first years looked surprised as well at that revelation. Well, to Sora it was a little less surprising, since he was used to being able to breath underwater.

“The water is kept from the dorm itself by magic. So students can walk around freely without having to worry about getting wet or not being able to breath whenever they are at the dorm.” Trey explained.

“Wow! Amazing!” Sora praised. He was really looking forward to visiting the dorm and seeing it for himself. Maybe they could even see some fish swimming past the windows.

“It pleases me to hear that you think so highly of our dorm.” A familiar voice said from behind Sora. As the keyblade wielder turned around, he could see the tall form of Jade towering over him with a polite smile on his face. Glee was clearly visible in his eyes. Cater seemed to tense slightly next to him, to Sora’s confusion. “As promised, I talked to Azul. He is able to meet with you on Saturday at nine in the morning. The meeting will take place in Mostro Lounge. Is this agreeable to you?”

“Of course. Thank you for arranging this for me, Jade. You’re a real lifesaver!” Sora said with a grin stretching from ear to ear. He could faintly hear Cater cooing next to him at the sight.

At the keyblade wielder’s sincere gratitude, Jade’s smile seemed to become more genuine. Though, this was only noticed by Trey. After assuring Sora that it was his pleasure to help him, he bid them all a good day and turned around to leave the room.

“A-ah, why did you have him arrange a meeting with Azul?” Cater asked the brunette worriedly. “You’re not looking to make a deal with him, right?”

“No, no. Nothing like that. It’s just that I don’t really have any money, so I was thinking of getting a job at Mostro Lounge, since I’ve some experience working in a restaurant. So I asked Jade whether there were any positions available and he offered to check with his dorm leader for me.” Sora explained, not having expected Cater’s strange reaction.

“Hm, the leech twins are pretty notorious. You should definitely watch out with them.” Cater warned the keyblade wielder, while sounding uncharacteristically serious. “I’ve heard rumors about students ending up in the hospital wing after crossing one of them….”

“You’re telling me… That guy gave me the creeps…” Ace muttered in agreement.

“Huh? He seemed pretty nice to me.” Sora argued, not really appreciating them talking bad about the teen without even knowing him. He had been nothing but kind to Sora so far, so he wouldn’t judge him by any rumors going around. And even if he had done something bad in the past, it wouldn’t necessarily make him a bad person.

Not wanting an argument to break out, Trey tried to get them back on topic by intersecting himself in the conversation and explaining about the remaining dorms. He explained how Pomefiore students could be recognized by their red and purple ribbons. Then, Cater supplied that Pomefiore was full of pretty faces who take their beauty routines very seriously. He pointed at a student with shoulder-length blonde hair and lavender highlights, who was sitting next to the blond student who had kidnapped Epel. As Sora looked closer he could see Epel sitting next to his kidnapper. The orange haired senior explained that their dorm leader was a pretty famous influencer who has over five million followers. Trey corrected Cater by saying that they didn’t only care about their appearance, but that a lot of their students also excelled at alchemy and charms.

Next, Cater told the first years about Ignihide, which could be recognized by their blue and black colors, however they weren’t often seen around the school except for classes. He explained that most of them were rather private. Trey added that they got a lot of members who have great magical energy and who are pretty techy too.

Lastly, Cater told them about Diasomnia. He pointed to a table with several students wearing light green and black and told them that they were kind of popular and had their own exclusive tables. However, as he mentioned that they were rather hard to approach one of the students they were watching suddenly disappeared…. And reappeared hanging upside down in the air almost nose to nose with Sora, startling the teen rather bad.

“Pray tell, are thou interested in mine dorm members? Fufufu, why not approach us instead of simply watching from afar? Are we not comrades from the same school? We from Diasomnia will welcome you anytime.” The strange teen said to his stunned audience. He made a rather strange sight with his short dark hair streaked with the occasional pink strands hanging down and almost touching their table, exposing his pointed ears. He then disappeared again and reappeared between Sora and Cater, shoving the orange head slightly to the side in the process. “Pardon me for appearing from above while you dined. I had not meant to startle thee. Are you mayhap the new dorm leader from ramshackle dorm? May I ask for thy name?”

“u-uh, my name’s Sora. Nice to meet you,…um..?” Sora answered.

“Oh, dear. Did I forget to introduce myself. Lilia is my name. Lilia Vanrouge. It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance, my dear.” Lillia said, while looking Sora in the eye seemingly searching for something. “Ah, it appears I was right. This power…. It has been so long since I felt it last.”

Lillia’s words seemed to confuse everyone, most of all Sora. After a slightly awkward silence, with Lilia remaining to stare in Sora’s eyes, the strange Diasomnia students suddenly spoke again. “If you find yourself in need of help, come find me, young keyblade wielder.” He said as he stood up. “I’ll be taking my leave now. May your day be pleasant.”

They watched Lillia walk away and join his fellow Diasomnia students at the cafeteria entrance. They had clearly been waiting for him.

“Our seat is practically 20 meters away from theirs, but you’re telling me he heard us at that distance….?!” Ace furiously whispered to their seniors, hoping they had an explanation for Lilia’s strange behavior.

“W-well….That’s how it is. Diasomnia has got a lot of very special students that are pretty gifted. That sometimes leads to their students being somewhat peculiar.” Trey tried to explain to the orange head, before turning to Sora. “What was that what he called you? Keyblade wielder…?”

“A-Ah, that’s just something you call someone who can summon a keyblade.” At the confused look of both Cater and Trey, Sora tried to come up with an explanation that wouldn’t threaten to expose the existence of other worlds. “Well, you see, a keyblade is something like a…um…. Key shaped sword? Certain people, like me, are able to summon it. It can be used as a magic focus or just to hit things with.” Sora explained and nervously rubbed his head, hoping that they would accept his explanation without too many questions.

“It was what Sora used to defeat that strange ink monster we ran into while looking for a magic crystal.” Deuce added, shocking their seniors. Of course they had heard that the first years had been punished and almost expelled. But they didn’t know that they had been in any danger, let alone that they had fought a monster.

“Y-you fought a monster?!” Exclaimed Trey. “And the headmaster let you!?”

“He didn’t know that there would be a monster in the mines. He actually expected us to fail and be unable to find a magic crystal. Yeesh, that man had already prepared all the paperwork to expel us…” Ace complained, not understanding why their senior sounded so furious.

“Seriously, that man…” Trey muttered in reply, still looking upset at the information he just received.

“At least nothing bad happened!” Cater tried to lighten the mood. Which seemed to work until Deuce opened his mouth again.

“If it wasn’t for Sora, we probably wouldn’t have made it out alive. It had knocked both Ace and me back with just one attack, leaving Grim as our only defense, while Sora fought the monster.”

This seemed to stun the seniors even more, clearly not having expected the situation to be so dire.

“And after all that, our dorm leader just had to put a collar on me for eating his tart?! He’s really the worst, no doubt!” Ace exclaimed, his anger for his dorm leader still burning bright.

“Hm? I’m the worst?” An icy voice said from behind the orange head, making everyone except Ace turn to the new arrival.

“Yeah! Only a tyrant will keep up with those kinda rules. Gimme a break.” Ace said, not realizing to whom he had replied. He was really digging his grave even deeper.

However, at Sora’s hushed whisper to shut up and look behind him, he turned around. And froze immediately, his anger suddenly replaced with dread. “GEH! D-dorm leader?! I-I didn’t see you there. Have you been standing there for long?”

“Hey there, Riddle! You look super cute today!” Cater greeted.

Deciding to ignore the idiot first year for the moment, Riddle turned to Cater with a frown. “Hmph. Keep talking like that, Cater, and it will be off with your head, too.”

“Come on now! Please go easy on me!” Cater whined theatrically.

Riddle finally turned to the two Heartslabyul first years before him. “You two are the ones who caused a ruckus yesterday, aren’t you? Good grief, the headmaster is too soft. Letting someone off the hook for not following the rules once will break the foundation. All those who don’t follow the rules just say goodbye to their heads.”

“His words definitely don’t match his cute face…” Ace whispered to Deuce, earning a warning glare from the red head.

“The headmaster may have forgiven you, but the next time you break the rules, I won’t let you off so easily.” Riddle warned.

At the harsh words, Ace became slightly nervous, starting to doubt whether he should voice his request. Taking a deep breath he decided to take the chance anyway. What’s the worst that could happen. “Um… By the way, dorm leader….. Is it possible for you to remove this collar?”

Riddle looked coldly at Ace. “I was thinking of removing it once you repented, but judging from what you said a while ago, it seems like you’ve yet to do so. I’ll have you walk around with that for a while longer. You don’t have to worry.” The dorm leader said with a cruel smile. “The first years’ lessons are focused on classroom learning rather than magic training. If you can’t use magic, then something like yesterday’s ruckus should be impossible. It’s perfect, isn’t it?”

Ignoring Ace’s sputtering in reaction to his words, Riddle turned to the keyblade wielder. “You are the new dorm leader of the unused dorm, correct?” Sora nodded in reply. “I would like to formally apologize for the trouble two of my dormmates have caused you.” Riddle said as he bowed in apology to Sora, who seemed to get embarrassed at the situation.

“Ah, you don’t have to apologize!” Sora tried to assure his fellow dorm leader. “I didn’t mind helping them and everything turned out alright in the end anyway.” Sora finished with a bright smile, causing a slight blush to appear on the redhead’s cheeks. The keyblade wielder stubbornly ignored the muttered comments from Cater and Jack next to him about how having to fight a monster wasn’t really normal.

“H-honestly, how can someone be so selfless.” Riddle mutters before turning to the Heartslabyul first years before him. “Now, if you’re done eating, hurry and go to your next class. Rule #271 of the Queen of Hearts: ‘You must not spend more than 15 minutes sitting at the table after you’ve eaten.’ You know what happens when you break the rules, don’t you?” He said and looked pointedly at the collar around Ace’s neck.

“Another rule?” Jack asked surprised at the revelation. How many rules did the Heartslabyul dorm really have?

“Answer me with ‘Yes, dorm leader!’” Riddle demanded when no reply came from his first years.

Immediately, Ace and Deuce straightened up. “Yes, dorm leader!” They said in unison.

“Good.” Was Riddle’s only response, looking satisfied.

“Now, now. I’ll see them off, don’t worry.” Trey reassured his dorm leader.

In response, the red haired dorm leader crossed his arms. “Hmph. You’re the vice dorm leader, so you better do your job properly. As stated by the Queen of Hearts’ Rule #339, ‘After-meal lemon tea should have nothing more or less than 2 sugar cubes in it.’ In order to protect that rule, I shall need to buy more sugar cubes at the school store. I’ll be taking my leave now.” Riddle said, turned around and walked towards the exit of the cafeteria. As he walked away, the teens could still hear him muttering to himself. “Good grief, the sugar pot running out of sugar cubes is a capital crime.”

As the redhead left, Cater let out a sigh of relief. “Man, that was scary…”

“He’s really lookin’ like a bad guy now, yanno.” Grim commented as he kept his eyes on Riddle’s form. He wanted to be sure that the guy was well out of ear shot before he talked shit about him behind his back.

Sora looked disappointed at Grim’s words. “Don’t be so mean, Grim.” The keyblade wielder admonished the cat, flicking his ear slightly to stress his point. Grim looked slightly cowed by the action, but didn’t apologize for what he said. “He doesn’t act like any of the bad guys I’ve met before.” Sora muttered under his breath. Though it wasn’t meant to be loud, it was still overheard by both Trey and Jack, causing them to give the keyblade wielder a rather worried look.

Relieved whispering suddenly erupted around them.

“Did the dorm leader leave….?”

“I completely forgot to follow Rule #186 ‘Never eat hamburger steak on Tuesdays.’ So I was wondering what he’d do if he found out…”

“Giving us a bit of freedom won’t hurt him, you know?”

“Why is that guy such a hard-ass?! Ugh..”

“He should just let us be. Who cares for those stupid rules anyway!”

After hearing all these negative opinions of his dorm leader, Trey tried to defend the redhead’s behavior to the first years at his table. “The dorm leader managed to become the leader one week after getting into the school. He’s a little sharp-tongued, but he’s only got the dorm’s best intention in mind, so he’s not really a bad guy. Since he took over nobody in Heartslabyul has repeated a year or dropped out.”

“Following the rules is kinda important.” Jack agreed with Trey. “Without them, there would only be chaos.” He said rather insightful to the surprise of everyone.

“But people who think like that don’t just put collars on others.” Grim argued grumpily.

At this Trey and Cater let out a small awkward laugh.

“It’s kinda your fault for going wild ruing the ceremony, Grim. Speaking of, what exactly is a ‘unique magic? I’ve heard that term multiple times now, but I’ve still got no idea what it means…” Sora asked the others.

“Putting aside all the other magic in the world, magic that can only be used by one person is called ‘unique magic.’ I think you’ll learn about it in detail if you pay attention in class.” Trey explained.

“Since Riddle’s unique magic is being able to seal off another person’s magic for a given time, it’s better not to go against him.” Cater warned the first years.

“As long as you follow the rules, Riddle can be pretty gentle.” Trey added and looked at Cater in warning.

“Oh yeah, am I gonna be chased out again if I don’t come back with a tart….?” Ace asked with a scowl, looking from Cater to Trey expectantly.

“Pretty much. That’s what Rule #53 says after all! Oh, and Riddle was looking forward to getting the first slice of that tart, so he probably won’t forgive you if you don’t bring the same thing!” Cater said cheerfully. He seemed to take for too much pleasure from this situation.

“Still, isn’t a whole tart a little bit expensive.” Deuce remarked.

Ace started to scowl even more, not yet having thought so far. “Ugh… I don’t have that much money though…”

“Then why not make some?” Cater suggested. “Those tarts were all made by Trey here, y’know?”

All the first years turned in shock to the green haired vice dorm leader. “You made all that, senior Trey?! Amazing! It’s better than what they sell here!” Ace exclaimed in awe.

“Haha, thanks. I think I have most of the tools and ingredients here…..But I won’t simply offer you my services. The next tart that Riddle wants to eat requires a lot of chestnuts, so would you mind gathering some for me?” Trey offered.

“So troublesome….. So, how much do you need?” Ace asked resigned. He wasn’t looking forward to gathering chestnuts, but at least he would have a tart to offer his dorm leader as a result.

“It’s going to be used for the Unbirthday party, so about two to three hundred will do.”

“That much!?” Grim and Deuce exclaimed, while Ace’s mouth dropped open in shock.

“I’ll have you help me with roasting and peeling them, as well.” Trey added, amused at the teens reactions.

“Of course I’ll help you collect the chestnuts. And hey, I could also help with baking the tart, if ya like? I’ve never baked a tart before, but I’ve cooked together with a chef in a restaurant before, so…” Sora offered Trey. He actually enjoyed cooking with little chef in the past and wouldn’t mind helping their green haired senior with the tarts. It would be nice to learn some new recipes.

Trey smiled at the keyblade wielder’s enthusiasm. He hadn’t expected any of the first years to readily offer their assistance, though he really should have after hearing what Sora did for his fellow first years yesterday. How had someone so selfless and nice ended up in NRC. The other first years probably required some incentive before they would agree to help.

“Your help is welcome of course. I could show you how to bake a tart as you help me, if you like?” Trey suggested to the excitement of the keyblade wielder, who immediately agreed. The others, however, looked rather reluctant to help except for Jack, who offered his help shortly after Sora had.

“Freshly made marron tarts are the best, but only the ones who made it are the ones who can eat it as soon as it gets out of the oven, you know?” Trey said, trying to manipulate the others into helping as well.

Of course the promise of food seemed to work perfectly for Grim. “Hey, you boys! Get your rear in gear! We’re gonna go pick some chestnuts ‘til we drop!” His eyes were already starting to sparkle as he imagined the delicious tart that awaited him.

“Huh, he changed his mind quickly. Is food really all he can think about…..” Jack observed quietly.

“Where can we find the chestnuts?” Sora asked Trey curiously.

“There are a lot of chestnut trees right by the forest behind the school’s botanical garden.” Trey explained.

Ace pumped his fist in the air in excitement. “Alright! Then, let’s meet in front of the greenhouse after school.”

All the first years agreed and quickly cleared away their lunch trays after saying goodbye to their seniors. Then they made their way to the sport field for their shared PE class. There, they met up with Epel again, who looked rather tired. What the heck had happened to him during lunch? Were his dorm mates really so bad to spend time with?

~~

A/N:

So I've also been busy with finishing this drawing of Sora in his NRC uniform. It has been a while since I've drawn anything, but I'm quite happy with how it turned out anyway.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, this chapter really wrote itself. It was actually supposed to include their final lesson of the day, PE, as well, but it was already at almost 7K words and I really wanted to post it as close to the Christmas holidays as I could so I decided to cut it here. Anyway, lots of fun interactions between Sora and many peeps from Twisted Wonderland. I hope you enjoyed it. It was a lot of fun to write anyway! For most characters I actually do a little research by reading/watching their personal stories and trying to analyze their speech patterns.
> 
> But arhg, it was really hard to write Lillia. I hope I did a decent job. I tried to remember some old English words that I learned during English (literature) class, but it has been a while and it never was my favorite subject…. Anyway it was also a bit of fun to write, since it’s so different from how everyone else talks. 
> 
> Did you like how I wrote their class time? I won’t be writing it so detailed every time Sora has class, but I enjoyed looking up some facts for poisonous mushroom and adding them. You see I’ve done both a bachelor and master in biology, so I found it all really interesting and hope you do as well. 
> 
> Okay, so I have a pretty fun idea for a Harry Potter/ Twisted wonderland fic that won’t leave me alone. I think it’s rather original, since it will start before canon of both Twisted Wonderland and Harry Potter and it will be very canon divergence for both. I actually came up with the idea while jogging, don’t ask me how, but it happened…. I’ve already written up a general outline for a large part of the first two arcs of the story and have some idea for how I want the rest to go. I also have some idea’s for pairings (Three different pairings are in the running, but I won’t know which to choose XD and I don’t think it will work to make it a multi paring with more than two partners, like I plan to do with this story). Anyway, I just wanted to let you know what I’ve been working on as well. I’ll of course keep updating this story as well, and the first chapter of my new story won’t be up for a bit yet, since I like to do some more research and plan some more stuff. I’ve graduated from my Master’s this year and I’m still looking for a job (which has been unsuccessful so far) so I’ve plenty of time to write and I enjoy writing fanfiction a lot. It really keeps my busy while I’m home alone with only my dog for company.
> 
> So question time for my loyal readers: Would any of you be interested in this Harry Potter x Twisted Wonderland story? And do you want to know a bit about what it will be about? If so I can post a small summary in the A/N of my next chapter of this story if you like. 
> 
> Again I want to thank:
> 
> \- Shell_BB  
> \- AmiYoshiko  
> \- Kanade Musings
> 
> For their translations. Without them, I wouldn’t have been able to write this.


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What's this? Another long chapter so quickly after the last! 
> 
> I actually started writing this chapter, before I had finished last chapter, since my beta was still looking it over and I was inspired enough that I wanted to continue writing. Thus, here’s another chapter so soon after the last. I hope everyone enjoys their new year's eve!

Sora and his friends quickly changed into their gym uniform once they had arrived at the sport field for their PE class. As they made their way onto the field, they could already see that their teacher was already on the field. He was waiting patiently for all the students to arrive. 

When the last student had arrived, their teacher blew on his whistle and motioned everyone to come closer to him. “I’m Vargas and I’m in charge of watching over your physical education.” He said enthusiastically. “Excellent magic starts with excellent bodies! Behold..!” He said as he started to flex his arm muscles, showing them proudly to his students. “I train these muscles every day! A magician with no stamina is unspeakable! First, do 20 laps around the field! And then, 100 sit-ups!” 

Most students groaned after hearing his instructions, but everyone started on their laps anyway. At first everyone seemed to keep the same pace, but after about three laps, the large group of students seemed to fall apart into smaller groups. The group in the lead mainly consisted of Savanaclaw students, including Jack. However, Sora was the exception to the surprise of many. Nobody had expected the small teen to easily keep up with the students of the more athletically inclined dorm. Not that Ace and Deuce were doing bad either, as they were in the group just behind the lead group. However, Grim and Epel were in the last group, not used to running for a long period of time. The cat huffed and puffed as he tried to keep up, while Epel seemed to only continue moving through sheer determination. However, it seemed to work, as he gradually seemed to move up in the group.

After they finished their laps, most students flopped down into the grass, trying to catch their breath. Sora, Jack and Deuce were quietly talking next to Ace, Epel and Grim, who were lying face down on the grass. However, Vargas didn’t give them much time to rest and ordered everyone up on their feet again, with the threat of more laps if they didn’t comply.

Not wanting to risk having to run more laps, everyone moved their protesting bodies into a standing position. Then, as instructed by their teacher, they paired up to do sit ups. One person had to steady the other’s legs and keep count, while the other performed the sit ups. Everyone had to switch positions after the first reached 100 sit ups.

Ace immediately sidled up to Sora and pulled him along to a free space. Epel and Jack paired up as well. Resigned, Deuce turned to look for an available student and asked the last person who was still standing alone, a green haired Diasomnia student. Fortunately for everyone involved, Grim was allowed to skip this part of the lesson.

Like before, this exercise seemed to be a bit too much for most students, with them just being able to reach 100 sit ups when taking several small breaks in between every couple of sit ups. However, Vargas didn’t seem to mind. As long as everyone reached 100 he didn’t seem to care how they reached it.

After everyone had finished their set, their teacher ordered them to finish today’s class with 50 push-ups. Of course everyone complied, even though most students looked quite exhausted already. Even Sora with his almost endless energy seemed to be a bit tired. 

Having finished the last exercise, everyone was allowed to shower and get dressed. As Sora and his friends left the changing room, Sora suggested they should check out their preferred club and see whether they would like to sign up. Everyone agreed and the group split up; with Jack and Deuce remaining on the sport field to look for the track and field club, Ace going to the Basketball club, Epel looking for the Magical shift club and Sora heading towards the Board game club. Grim didn’t see the point in joining a club and doing any unnecessary work and headed back to his dorm. They promised to meet up again after club activities had ended to collect chestnuts and bake the apology tart with Trey’s help. After having explained the situation to Epel, he offered his help as well.

~~

Thus, Sora ended up walking down a second floor hallway by himself, looking for the Board game club room. After checking multiple rooms, he finally found what he thought to be the correct room. The room was similar to the one the keyblade wielder had his Magical History class in earlier that day. However, different from his class room, this room had multiple cupboards filled with many board games placed against the walls. Furthermore, in the middle of the room a space was cleared so that games could be played on the floor. For this occasion, multiple cushions were placed on the floor as well. Two of those pillows were being used at the moment. One of them was occupied by a rather tall teen, with fiery blue hair, which flowed to below his waist. He also had striking yellow eyes and blue lips. Next to him, a small boy was sitting. He looked rather similar to the teen, since he also had fiery blue hair. Though his was a lot shorter than that of the other. To the keyblade wielder’s surprise, the kids mouth was covered by what looked to be a mouthpiece and the kid seemed to be wearing some sort of body armor. It actually looked a bit like what everyone wears in the Grid, Tron’s world, including the light that could be seen on the kid’s body. But what was a kid doing in NRC anyway. He didn’t look old enough to be a student here.

The duo looked to be engrossed with playing some sort of board game and hadn’t noticed Sora’s entrance yet. Curious, the brunette moved closer to get a better look at what the two were playing. Some hexagonal tiles were placed on the floor and the duo took turns in either placing a new tile or moving one of the tiles already on the floor. The tiles had images of bugs on them and the tiles appeared to be either black or white, probably indicating to whom the tile belonged to. 

Suddenly, the older teen looked up and finally took notice of Sora. His eyes widened in surprise. “A-ah! I-I didn’t notice you….. U-um what… um … are you doing here?” Hearing the other’s words, the kid turned to Sora in wonder.

Flabbergasted at the subdued and rather nervous sounding greeting, Sora answered with less enthusiasm than he normally would. He didn’t want to make the other even more nervous after all. “Hey, I’m Sora, a first year. I’m looking to join the board game club. What game are you playing?”

The older blue haired teen’s face turned from shock to excitement at hearing this. His anxiety seemed to disappear as he explained the board game to a captivated audience. Apparently, they were playing a game called Hive, in which two players have to surround their opponent’s queen bee, while protecting their own. He explained that it relied heavily on strategy, but that it was easy to learn and therefore perfect for beginners. After the explanation, his nervousness seemed to return a bit, but when he noticed that the keyblade wielders showed clear interest all throughout the explanation, he seemed to relax slightly. 

“Brother, you didn’t even introduce yourself before going on a rant.” The kid huffed at his brother, before he made his way towards Sora and holding out his hand. “Hi! I’m Ortho!” 

Sora smiled and shook Ortho’s hand. Then he turned expectantly to the other’s brother. However, before he could introduce himself, his brother interrupted. “That’s my big brother Idia. He’s really amazing! He is super good at games and he’s the dorm leader of Ignihide.”

“A-ah, Ortho…don’t say such embarrassing things..” Idia said with a slight blush coloring his cheeks. 

“So, is it okay for me to join your club? It looks like a lot of fun!” Sora asked the duo.

“Y-Yeah, of course. It might be nice to have another person to play against…” Idia finished wistfully.

“Is it only the two of you?” Sora questioned curiously. 

“No, no. There’s also another member, but he isn’t here today.” Idia reassured, seemingly beginning to get more comfortable in Sora’s presence. 

After finishing the paperwork for joining the club, Idia offered to play a round of Hive with Sora. Of course Sora accepted…. And lost really badly. It was not that he was bad at strategy, but Idia was just better and seemed to be able to predict Sora’s moves before the keyblade wielder had even thought of them himself. Ortho provided cheerful commentary all throughout their game and tried to cheer Sora up after he lost. During the game the keyblade wielder did consider asking the two about helping him with his phone trouble, but he didn’t want to look like he only wanted to be their friend to take advantage of their skills. Their friendship was fragile enough at the moment with Idia being so skittish and he didn’t want to risk ruining their friendship. He might ask later, when the other seemed more comfortable with him or he would look for someone else to help him. It would be great if fixing what was wrong with his phone would help him contact his friends, but it wasn’t worth it if it meant losing his friendship with the Shroud brothers. It still perplexed him that it didn’t work in this world. Was it only because his phone was broken, or was he just beyond reach of his friends…. He tried to shake of these depressing thoughts and focus on the present. Like playing games with the Shroud brothers and helping Ace with baking his apology tart.

Since he still had some time left before he had agreed to meet with the others, Sora played another game, this time against Ortho. Idia provided some tips while they played, but the keyblade wielder was still unable to beat the younger brother. Though, Sora did appear to become somewhat better at the game. He congratulated Ortho with his victory and told the duo that he had to leave already, since he had promised to help his friends out later this afternoon. The Shroud brothers seemed a bit disappointed at the news, but bid him goodbye anyway and told him that this week the club room would be open every afternoon after classes and that he would be welcome any time to join them. After this week, meetings would resume being three times a week; on Monday, Tuesday and Thursday and that they were sort of mandatory unless he had a good reason or the meeting was canceled. 

~~

Sora made his way towards the greenhouse. At the moment, he was really grateful for the tour they had on their first day, otherwise he would most likely have gotten lost looking for it. As he walked down the path leading to the greenhouse, he could see that almost all of his friends were already there and waiting for the others. Only Epel and Ace were still missing. 

While they waited, the keyblade wielder asked his friends how their clubs were and whether they had signed up for them. Jack and Deuce excitedly told him about the track and field club and how fast everyone there was. Of course they signed up for it in the end, causing Grim to comment why they would ever consider spending time running around. Choosing to ignore the cat’s comment, Sora described his time in the board game club and how he met the Ignihide dorm leader and his little brother. Just as the brunette finished his story, Epel and Ace hurriedly made their way towards them. They both looked slightly disheveled and out of breath.

“A-alright, everyone’s here. We can finally start gathering chestnuts.” Ace huffed out, trying to pretend like he was not trying to catch his breath. 

“We were waiting for your lazy but, ya know.” Grim muttered in response. “Be grateful that I’m going to help ya at all!”

“You’re only here for the tart and not to help me, idiot cat.” Ace exclaimed looking slightly irritated by the cat’s words. Though, he seemed to get himself together quickly afterwards as the group made their way into the woods behind their campus. As they walked farther into the woods, the amount of trees containing chestnuts significantly increased. 

“Whoa! There really are a lotta chestnuts here! If we have this much, then it’s all-you-can-eat marron tarts for us! Gehehe….” Grim exclaimed as he pranced in front of the group. He looked around at the chestnuts, drool already leaking from his mouth. The cat was clearly imagining eating the tarts already. He reached out to grab one of the chestnuts that had fallen on the ground. “Let’s hurry and- ouch!!” Grim suddenly shouted as he hopped around holding one of his front paws to his chest. “Gah! The chestnut’s thorns dug into my pawpads!”

“Are you okay, Grim?” Sora worriedly asked as he crouched before the cat. “Hey, let me look at it, please.” The keyblade wielder held out his right hand and looked expectantly at the cat, who after considering it for a bit offered his injured paw. As Sora took a closer look at it, he could see blood welling from a small puncture wound. When the teen lightly touched it with his finger, Grim tensed from the pain. Sora decided then that he would heal the small wound even though it didn’t look to be serious, it still seemed to pain the cat. The keyblade wielder held his left hand above the paw still held in his right hand and focused on casting a minor cure spell. As the others watched on in fascination, the brunette’s hand began to glow a slight green color. Sora removed his hand and the wound was gone, to the surprise of his audience. Grim looked with large, grateful eyes to Sora and carefully looked his paw over. 

“Thank you…” The cat muttered softly, looking away in embarrassment. 

“Looks like it’ll be impossible to pick them up with bare hands.” Deuce observed thoughtfully. “It would also be smart to use a bucket to place them all in.”

“Maybe we can find those in the botanical garden?” Ace offered.

“Shall we go see?” Deuce suggested and as everyone gave their agreement, they left the woods and entered the botanical garden. Which was a beautiful place with all kinds of flowers growing everywhere, even in pots hanging from the ceiling. The temperature was also nice and warm, but not too warm. Soft sunlight shone through the class ceiling, giving everything a dreamy look. As they made their way further into the botanical garden, everyone looked around in awe. They hadn’t expected such a place to exist in the school.

“Whoa! It looks bigger on the inside.” Ace said in wonder.

“The necessary tools should probably be here somewhere. Why don’t we split up and look for them?” Jack suggested.

“Me and Deuce will go right, then.” Ace suggested causing Deuce to sputter, but eventually the teen agreed, blushing wildly to the satisfaction of Ace. 

“I’ll check west.” Epel offered. 

“I’ll go with you, Epel. Grim and Sora, why don’t you check around the inner gardens. You are after all the only one Grim even remotely listens to.” Jack said, making a lot of sense.

Thus, everyone split up for the second time that afternoon. As Sora wandered the garden with Grim by his side, the keyblade wielder took in his surroundings. It really was a nice and peaceful place here. Maybe he could come back in the future just to look around.

“Hey, come look at this. It looks like there’s tonsa fruit here! They smell soooo good!” Grim suddenly exclaimed, tearing the brunette from his thoughts. The cat was standing excitedly next to a bush of strange yellow berries. It weren’t any kind of berries Sora had seen before, so Sora hurried to stop the cat from putting any into his mouth. They could very well be poisonous, after all. 

“Don’t eat that! You don’t know if they’re poisonous. Don’t you remember what master Crewel said this morning.” Sora warned the cat. Grim seemed to ignore him and had plucked a berry already. Not wanting to take any risk, Sora moved to pluck the berry from the cat’s grip. However, as Sora stepped closer to Grim, his foot stepped onto something soft and squishy. What the…?!

“Hey, You’ve got guts stepping on someone’s tail without apologizing.” Someone growled from the other side of the bush next to Sora. As the keyblade wielder turned to locate the source of the voice, he could see a rather tall teen stepping out of the bush. He was rather muscular, with golden brown skin, thick, messy brown hair with two braids on either side of his face and vibrant green eyes, that were looking Sora up and down. A tin scar went through his left eyebrow to his cheek. Surprisingly, he was not wearing the uniform jacket. Only his yellow waistcoat was on, indicating that he was from Savanaclaw. On his head two light-brown lion ears could be seen and from his backside a similarly colored tail was peeking out. However the tip of it looked a bit roughened up. That was probably the keyblade wielder’s fault……Ah, shit, he should probably apologize. 

However, before he could apologize, Grim had already put his foot in his mouth. “Are you the guy tending to this place? Wow, you’ve got quite a scary mug…”

“I went here thinking I can have a peaceful nap, but then my tail gets stepped on and I get insulted. This is the worst.” The lion-eared teen complained, seeming rather irritated at their presence.

“I’m so sorry. I didn’t see it. Does….Does it still hurt? I can heal it for you as an apology if you like?” Sora offered hopefully. He really didn’t want to upset the other. 

“You….. Ah, you’re the little herbivore that the mirror couldn’t sort. Hmph.” The lion-eared teen leaned closer to Sora, until his nose was level with the top of the other’s head. Then he…sniffed him? He stayed in this position for a while, with Sora not willing to move and disturb him any further. As The lion-eared teen moved back, Sora could see how the other’s surprised look turned to one of smugness. 

“I was going to punish you for waking me and stepping on my tail, but….. If you promise me a favor in the future and if you heal my tail for me, I will reconsider.”

“Okay!” Sora said with a smile and held his hand up expectantly, his action mirroring the one he had done earlier for Grim. The other teen carefully placed his tail in Sora’s hand and watched intensely how the keyblade wielder healed it. The earlier throbbing he was feeling disappeared and was replaced with a soothing warmth. As his tail was released, he flicked it experimentally. It felt like nothing had ever happened to it. Just as he was about to make another comment to the keyblade wielder, sudden shouting stopped him.

“ Leona!” Someone unfamiliar exclaimed cheerfully. 

This sudden intrusion seemed to sour the lion-earned teens mood immensely. “What?” He irately bit out.

The newcomer, also a Savanaclaw student, who was slightly taller than Sora, had spiky dark blond hair, two large hyena ears and green-grey eyes, casually moved closer to the trio. “I knew you’d be here. You’ve got supplementary lessons today.”

“And there comes the noisy one.” Leona complained.

“You already repeated a year, Leona. If things keep going like this, we’ll end up being classmates next year, y’know?”

“Ah, shut it. Stop nagging, Ruggie.” Leona said in reply. He seemed to get more irritated the longer the other kept talking. The two actually seemed to have forgotten they had company.

“I don’t wanna nag you either! Geez, you can do anything you put your mind to, but you don’t put effort at all. Come on, let’s go!” Ruggie said and motioned for the other to follow him. However, the blonde then took notice of Sora standing slightly behind Leona. “Oh, who’s this! Shishishi! Leona, you didn’t tell me you were meeting someone here. Were you two on a date!” Ruggie had a large mischievous smile on his face as he said the last part, hoping to embarrass either of the teens before him.

“Tch. Don’t say such ridiculous things, Ruggie. Though, the herbivore is quite interesting….. See you later, herbivores. And don’t forgot that favor you owe me.” Leona said as he walked away. Ruggie followed him closely on his heels, winking at Sora as they left. 

“Gah!! That was nerve-wrecking…! What’s with that scary weirdo?!” Grim exclaimed as the duo was out of earshot. 

“Don’t be so mean, Grim. He seemed rather nice, if a bit gruff.” Sora admonished the cat. 

“To you maybe, but if it was me who had stepped on his tail, he would have eaten me alive.” Grim whined as a shiver ran along his spine at the thought. “And don’t you just agree to give favors to strangers. You don’t want to owe that weirdo.”

Not wanting to go into an argument with the cat, Sora chose to ignore the comment as the two moved further along the garden. However, they couldn’t find any baskets or gloves for their use. After a while they both gave up and returned to the entrance of the botanical garden. Unsurprisingly, they were not the first to arrive. Epel and Jack were already there. Though, they appeared to be empty handed. Hopefully, Ace and Deuce would have had better luck. 

Shortly after Sora and Grim had joined the duo, Ace and Deuce also arrived. They both looked smug as they showed the baskets and tongs they had found. 

“We found two baskets and a ton of tongs here!” Ace unnecessarily proclaimed. 

“Let’s go collect the chestnuts already.” Epel suggested and they made their way back into the woods behind their campus. Ace, Sora and Jack moved to one tree, while Grim, Deuce and Epel moved to another. Both groups had one bucket each and aimed to fill both of them to the brim. Suitably armed, the teens began to harvest the chestnuts. With all of them working together, the amount of chestnuts in their basket increased rapidly. When both of the baskets were filled, the teens turned to each other.

“Will that be enough? Should we count them?” Jack asked, looking at the baskets and trying to estimate how many chestnuts were inside them.

“Are you mad, that will take ages!” Ace complained.

“It should be enough!” Sora said. “And if not, we could always come back and get more. Let’s go back to senior Trey!”

The promise of tarts seemed to energize everyone, especially Grim. “Nyaha! I can practically taste the tart already!”

With renewed energy the group made their way towards the kitchen. There, the green-haired senior already awaited them. He looked happy to see them and he looked especially delighted at the sight of their almost overflowing baskets with chestnuts. 

“Welcome back. I see you’ve picked a bunch.” He greeted them.

“You can make a gigantic tart with these!” Grim exclaimed proudly.

“Though, you’ll end up doing more work, but … Do your best.” Trey said to their dismay. 

“All of this, huh….. I feel like we’ll be here for a long time.” Deuce observed, sounding quite reluctant to peel so many chestnuts. 

“If we work together it won’t take that long!” Sora tried to reassure the others. He seemed to succeed somewhat if the smiles he got in return were to be believed.

“Yeah, yeah. Let’s just get it over with!” Ace agreed. 

The teens settled around the room as Trey explained how to remove the shells of the chestnuts using magic. Since Ace couldn’t use any magic, the green-haired teen also showed them how to remove it the regular way without magic. The first years then proceeded to remove the shells at a rather fast pace. Seeing that all the chestnuts had their skin already removed, Trey ordered them to then continue with preparing them for the filling. The first years had to mash the peeled chestnuts and force the resulting puree through a sieve. Unfortunately, they had to do this by hand, since it was still too complex for them to use magic for. 

However, Trey asked Sora to help him prepare the dough for the tarts instead, since the keyblade wielder was the only first year with some cooking or baking experience. Sora retrieved the ingredients and handed them to Trey one by one (flour, sugar, salt, eggs, butter, cream and vanilla extract), while the green-haired teen measured the correct amounts. At his senior’s instruction, Sora started to cut up the butter in small cubes and added them to the mix of flour, sugar and salt that Trey had already placed in the food processor. While Sora pulsed the mixtures in the food processor, Trey combined the egg yolk, cream and vanilla and stirred them thoroughly. This egg mixture was then added to the food processor and whisked until it was one consistent mixture. Next, the fun part began, according to Trey. He split the dough in half and gave one of them to the keyblade wielder. Then, the green-haired teen showed Sora how to shape the dough into a round shape, which the brunette did. It actually was fun to do and Sora’s dough had almost exactly the same shape as Trey’s. Again, Trey first showed the other how to place the dough in the tart tin and how to extend the dough slightly above the rim of the tin. Sora mirrored his actions. The green-haired teen was actually a great teacher and Sora enjoyed working with him. He wouldn’t mind doing this again in the future. It really reminded him of working with little chef, and though it made him a bit homesick, he still enjoyed it a lot. 

“You did great, Sora. You really are a quick study.” The green-haired teen praised Sora, who rewarded the other with a bright smile. “Now we have to place them in the refrigerator for about half an hour.”

After the tart crust was placed in the refrigerator, the duo returned to the other first years…. And found that they had made quite a mess. It seemed that straining the chestnuts was not as easy as it looked and took a bit of patience, which not all of the first years seemed to have. Splatters of chestnut puree could be seen on the cupboards, the floor and even some on the students. Jack and Epel had fortunately avoided the worst of it, but the other three were covered in multiple splatters of the mush. Though, it looked like they had finished their work at least. And most of the chestnut puree had ended up in a bucket. 

“Pfft. What happened?” Sora asked, trying hard not to laugh.

“Some people couldn’t control themselves and had to make a competition out of it.” Epel bit out, sounding rather irritated. 

“You know you have to clean up the mess you made by yourself, right?” Trey asked with a rather terrifying smile. 

“A-ah, we didn’t mean to make this mess. O-of course, we’ll clean everything up.” Deuce sputtered in response. 

“Haha. Great work anyway. I’m sure that your hard work will all be worth it.” Trey said, his smile having turned friendly again. “We’ll use the chestnut paste to make the filling, which uses butter and sugar. And then, I’ll also add some oyster sauce as a secret ingredient.” The senior added sounding completely serious. 

“Oyster sauce?!” Ace, Deuce, Jack and Epel shouted in surprise. 

“That’s not really an ingredient, right?” Sora added sounding unsure. He knew that sometimes savory ingredients were added to sweet dishes, but it didn’t really sound right this time. But Trey had sounded so sincere when he said it. He wouldn’t be lying to them, right?

“The savory flavor of the chestnuts gives the cream a rich flavor. And then, to make it better, I use this ‘Walrus-brand young oyster sauce’. There’s no famous pâtissier who doesn’t use this for their tarts, you know?” Trey explained sounding just as sincere as he had earlier. His expression hadn’t changed at all to show that the senior was lying, but….. He had to be lying. Sora knew from his own experience that oyster sauce was not an indispensable ingredient in any tart that he knew little chef had ever baked. Even though Sora had never made any tarts himself, he had watched the other make some before. And not once had he used oyster sauce. Of course, little chef was no pâtissier, but he was a pretty famous chef, who was also able to bake pretty much anything. So he would have known to use this ‘secret’ ingredient, if what Trey said was true. So, does that mean that Trey is able to lie perfectly, without any tells. That’s quite terrifying…..

While Sora had already caught on to the other’s lies, the other first years still seemed to believe him. “Really….? It’s a pretty salty sauce, isn’t it?” Deuce asked, looking and sounding rather confused.

“You know how they put chocolate in curry, too? It kinda makes sense…..” Ace added thoughtfully.

Not being able to take in anymore, Trey started to laugh. “I was just joking! There’s no way I’d put oyster sauce in a dessert, you know?”

Ace looked rather offended at the senior’s lie. “What the heck!? Are you making fun of us!?”

“That wasn’t really nice of you, you know.” Jack added, one of his ears had started to twitch in irritation. 

“Haha! It’s obviously impossible if you think about it a little!” Trey replied cheerfully, not seeming to mind the negative reaction his little deception had unleashed in the first years. Well, most of them looked rather miffed by everything except for Sora, who looked thoughtful instead. “The moral lesson here is that you shouldn’t believe anything you’re told. Learn to doubt a bit, okay?” The green haired teen told them. It sounded like friendly advice, but Sora was able to hear an undertone to it. Yet he couldn’t really make out the other emotion he had heard. 

“This guy looks nice, but he’s the type who can tell lies with no problem, huh….” Grim observed uncharacteristically insightful. 

“Next is the fresh cream- Ah!” Trey exclaimed as he looked at the remaining ingredients. “It looks like we do not have enough cream for the amount of chestnuts you picked. I hadn’t expected you guys to come back with quite so many.“

“I’ll go buy some. Do they sell it in the school store?” Deuce offered.

However, Trey shook his head at him. “It’s better you clean yourself up first before going out. One of you, who is still clean, would be able to get it from the school store. That shop sells pretty much anything, so I’m sure it should be there.”

“I’ll go.” Epel offered. “Do you only need some fresh cream?”

“Ah, now that you mention it. I also need two packs of milk, two cartons of eggs, silicon cups and five canned fruits….”

“O-oh, I don’t think I can carry all of that alone…” Epel admitted looking a bit ashamed.

“I’ll help!” Jack offered. “This is going to be my first time visiting the school store though. I.. um.. don’t really know where it is…”

Epel gave Jack a small grateful smile. “I know where it is, don’t worry.” 

As the duo left the kitchen to get the requested supplies, the remaining first years looked to each other not knowing what to do now, since their task was completed. 

“Why don’t you three get cleaned up?” Trey suggested. The trio of Grim, Ace and Deuce shrugged, having nothing better to do they did as their senior suggested. This left Sora alone with Trey again. Well, not for long. Just as the trio had left the kitchen, a certain orange-haired senior appeared.

“Hi! How’s it going?” Cater asked as he moved to stand next to the keyblade wielder. “Aw, man. The tarts aren’t finished yet?” He said sounding disappointed and threw his arm around Sora’s shoulder. 

“The crust is about ready to be placed into the oven. You’re just in time to help us making the filling. We have enough supplies to make one tart.” Trey said as he handed Cater a bowl and a whisk, resulting in the other having to release Sora. “You can start by whisking that. Sora, can you place the tart crusts into the oven?” 

Rather reluctantly, Cater did as instructed, while Sora placed the tart crusts into the oven. Meanwhile, Trey was cleaning the mess the others had made using his magic. Even though he had threatened the ones responsible to do it, he took pity on them. As Cater was working, he quietly talked with Sora about this and that. He asked about whether Sora had already decided on a club and was disappointed to hear that the keyblade wielder wouldn’t be joining his club, the light music club. Though, Cater did sound surprised that the other got to meet the rather elusive Ignihide dorm leader in the flesh (and not just via his tablet screen). 

After a while, Epel and Jack returned with the awaited ingredients at the same time that Deuce, Ace and Grim returned from cleaning up. The trio had actually managed to get most of the chestnut mush from their clothes and hair, which was probably why it had taken so long. At least they hadn’t made a half-assed attempt at it.

Trey thanked Epel and Jack as he retrieved the bags containing the ingredients. Then he proceeded to make another batch of tart filling and after retrieving the tart crusts from the oven and letting them cool for a bit, he added the filling to both tarts and placed them back in the oven for a short while. While they waited for the tart to bake, Grim had plastered his face against the oven door and hungrily looked at the baking tarts. Cater, who was still standing next to Sora, had decided to show the keyblade wielder how MagiCam worked and showed him some photos. 

Finally, Trey retrieved the tarts from the oven. One was carefully set aside to cool, while the senior presented the other to his captivated audience. “Alright, the last step is to sprinkle some powdered sugar on top and then…” He said as he did just that. 

“We’re done!” Shouted Ace and Grim in unison. The others also looked excited and happy as they looked on while Trey served everyone a slice. 

“Nice work! It looks totally ‘grammable’! Let me take a pic!” Cater said as he made a photo first of the slice he had received and then of the intact tart. 

“Ah! Why did you get a slice as well. You didn’t do anything….” Ace said accusingly the his fellow orange head.

“I came to check on my cute little juniors ‘cause you were doing your best! And Trey made my whisk the filling…now I’m all tired. Ahaha, you look dead tired as well!” Cater said, sounding far to cheerful for someone who proclaims to be tired.

“Doing things you’re not used to can be tiring. In any case, sweets are the solution for a weary body. Let’s dig in!” Trey told everyone. At his suggestion everyone took a bite of the delicious tart. Sounds of delight could be heard all around the room as the teens seemed to savor the taste. 

“Whoa…! It smells so sweet and good! The chestnuts on top are so smooth, and the cream is so fluffy!” Grim moaned. “It’s sweet, but it’s not overpowering. My mouth feels like it’s in a field of chestnuts, yanno!”

“This is so good!” Cater uttered in between his bites.

“Amazing….. It’s better than the ones in the store!” Deuce complimented. 

“Oh, yeah. Do that for them, Trey.” Cater suddenly asked the green-haired teen. 

Trey looked confused at first, but he seemed to get what the other meant quickly. He pulled out his magic pen in response. “You boys, what are your favorite foods?” Trey asked, surprising the others at the change in topic. 

“Mine’s…. cherry pie and hamburger.” Ace said. 

“Mine is canned tuna. Oh, and cheesy omelet, grilled meat, pudding and-“ Grim excitedly replied, only just about keeping himself from mentioning even more food.

“If I were to choose, I’d probably pick omurice.” Deuce responded.

“Um… I like everything that’s made by my friends… But if I would have to choose any type of fried fish!” Sora replied. 

“You already know that mine is grilled rum meat with diablo sauce.” Cater said with a wink. 

“Mine’s pear compote.” Jack added and then they all turned to Epel waiting expectantly for his response. 

Epel seemed unsure about answering, but seemed to come to a decision. “It’s yakiniku! Not macarons…” He muttered the last part bitterly. 

“Alright, here we go. Doodle suit!” Trey exclaimed as he pointed his magic pen at the slices of tart the teens were holding. They briefly shone with a brilliant light, to the shock of everyone except Cater and Trey, before returning to their natural state. 

“T-this is….?” Deuce sputtered, staring at his plate like he didn’t know whether he wanted to take another bite or he wanted throw it away. 

“Take another bite of the marron tart, if you’d please.” Trey urged, looking delighted at the response his magic had caused.

Sora was the first to muster the courage and took a bite. “Oh! It actually tastes like fried salmon!”

Seeing that nothing bad had happened to the brunette, the others also took a bite. “Hm? This is… it’s marron tart, but I can taste cherry pie!”

“Whoah! I can taste the yakiniku! Mmmh!” Epel said, before he quickly took another bite clearly savoring the taste.

“It’s interesting, right?! Don’tcha think this’ll fly well if you do this at a tea party with girls?” Cater teased Trey, who actually didn’t seem to be affected by it at all. He had probably gotten used to it, living with the other for more than two years. 

“It’s amazing! Is changing something’s flavor your unique magic, senior Trey?” Deuce asked.

“To be more precise, it’s the ability to ‘overwrite things with what you imagine.’ I can do it with color and smell too, not just taste. It’s not a permanent effect so it’s sort of like a sketch only. That’s why I call this magic ‘doodle’. It’s merely sketching.” Trey explained.

“You must have a great imagination then, Trey senpai! That’s incredible!” Sora complimented the green-haired senior, whose cheeks suddenly turned a slight pink, to the delight of Cater. 

“A-ah, no. It’s not that impressive. My magic is merely a toy when compared to great magicians, like our dorm leader. Our levels are just too different.” Trey said, while scratching his cheek in embarrassment. He actually wasn’t able to meet Sora’s eyes as he said that, which seemed to cause Cater to spontaneously burst out in giggles. Deciding to ignore his fellow third year’s behavior, Trey turned to look at the clock on the wall. “…. Alright! The night is deep. Let’s give the tart to the Prefect tomorrow, okay? Tomorrow is the Unbirthday Party. Don’t be late, got it?”

Everyone agreed with the green-haired teen and started to clear away the last of their mess. Sora was holding the tart, which had been placed in a carton box, when they left the kitchen. Suddenly, Ace turned to him.

“Hi, Sora, can I sleep over again? It seems like this bully senior won’t let me back in yet.” Ace whined and gave an irritated look to his fellow orange head before turning back to Sora. 

“Oh, my! What passive-aggressive wording!” Cater teased.

“Hey, Ace. Don’t rely on Sora too much. You don’t want to be a bother to him, right.” Deuce said with a harsh glare to Ace. 

“Eh?! Am I supposed to sleep outside then?” Ace tried to defend himself.

Not wanting a fight to break out, Trey decided to interfere. “How about we have Deuce stay over in Sora’s dorm, too, to help keep an eye on Ace. I’ll give you permission as the vice dorm leader. At least if Sora agrees to host you guys.”

“Of course Deuce and Ace can stay! We can have a sleep over!” Sora agreed excitedly.

“Aren’t you being too soft on them, Trey!?” Cater said in disbelief, before his smile turned mischievous. “How nice! Hey, Hey, Sora, can I stay with you guys, too?” Cater asked sweetly and threw his arm over the keyblade wielder, pulling him closer. Sora stiffened slightly at the unexpected closeness, but relaxed almost immediately. He had already gotten somewhat used to the other’s clinginess and actually didn’t mind it anymore. 

“You’re not included.” Trey said sternly. “And don’t bother the firsties so much. You don’t want to scare them away, right?”

“Aw, so stingy. Sora doesn’t seem to mind it!” Cater whined, but released Sora anyway. He didn’t want to upset Trey too much or he might get punished.

“I’m sorry for leaving our two boys in your care again, Sora. See you tomorrow.” Trey said before he left and he tugged a reluctant Cater behind him.

“Too bad that we don’t have our dorm leader’s permission to stay with you.” Epel said sounding really disappointed. “But I don’t want to face his anger again, so I better go. Good luck keeping those three in line and see you tomorrow!” 

“Yeah, see you tomorrow, Sora. We should really have a sleep over when all of this is over.” Jack said and he and Epel made their way to the mirror room. 

The quartet watched them leave, before making their way to ramshackle dorm. 

“Tomorrow is the Unbirthday Party…. I’ll definitely make him remove this damn collar! Just you wait, Dorm leader!” Ace declared as the entered the dorm.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was actually supposed to be included in the last chapter, but that chapter was getting too long, so I decided to split it up. I hope you enjoyed it!
> 
> Since I’m not really that knowledgeable about board games, especially those meant for only two people, I had to do some research. I liked the sound of the game ‘Hive’ and thought it would be something the Shroud brothers would enjoy to play together. I know Azul is also in the board game club, but I didn’t want to introduce to many new characters at the same time, and I thought it would be better for Sora to meet Idia while he was only with his brother, so he couldn’t disappear into the background to much. Since Idia mostly seemed to forget his anxiety when talking about something he liked, I thought it a great way to introduce him to Sora while explaining the board game they’re playing. 
> 
> I also looked up some information about tart making, like what it meant to strain the chestnuts, since Trey said in episode 1 chapter 10: “Alright, next up is straining them.” And how to make a tart crust, since I assume Trey prepared the crust while the others were preparing the chestnuts, before he sends Deuce and MC to Sam’s shop to get extra ingredients for the filling. At least I assumed it was only for the filling. I actually enjoy baking, but I don’t really have a lot of experience with baking tarts, so I had to look some stuff up. 
> 
> The tart baking scene actually wasn’t supposed to be so long, but I just couldn’t stop writing. I had rather a lot of fun writing it and changing it up from canon. And for Sora’s favorite food, I really had no idea what to choose, but I thought since he lived on an island for most of his life that he probably has eaten a lot of seafood and might therefore have a preference for fried fish.
> 
> And yeah, official introduction of Idia, Ortho, Leona and Ruggie!
> 
> I know I promised you a sneak peak at my Harry Potter x Twisted wonderland fic, but I actually already wrote the first chapter. I only need to revise it one more time (my beta already revised it for me, but I want to give it one more look myself as well, before posting) and write I summary. I promise to post it tomorrow, see keep an eye out! I’m really excited about that story. Your enthusiastic reaction greatly motivated me in writing it. 
> 
> And don’t worry, I won’t abandon this fic. But I think switching between writing both will hopefully keep me from suffering the feared writer’s block (which thankfully I haven’t suffered yet from for this fic). I’m actually really looking forward to writing next chapter, since another one of my favorite characters will be introduced and I have a rather nice scene planned for that (which is not canon). Can anyone guess who it is going to be? I did mention a couple of chapters ago that I was going to introduce another favorite character (and if you paid attention you to my A/N of that chapter, you already know who that is) and I can confess, it should give you a bit of a hint to my taste in characters and which character I’ll introduce next chapter😉


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi, it's me again with another chapter of We’ll walk together towards dark unseen (and our hearts will be our guiding key). This is again beta read by my best friend Andara16, who I’m really grateful to, since she always managed to catch a lot of my mistakes.
> 
> OMG, this fic has already passed the 140 kudos! Everyone, thank you so much for the love you give this story. Every comment and kudo that you leave brings a smile to my face and motivates me to finish the next chapter as soon as I can.
> 
> I hope you enjoy this chapter!

Sora was confused as he tried to look around from his position lying on the ground. Everything was in gray tones… like that dream he had yesterday. Suddenly, a familiar figure came into few. It was the Queen of Hearts?!

“How dare you defile my roses! You better prepare yourself!” She shouted as she waved around a uprooted rose bush. Some roses were painted red, while others had remained in their pristine white condition.

Next to Sora, three rather familiar yet terrified card soldiers were kneeling. To Sora’s horror, one of them was Riku. 

“Oh, please spare me, my Queen! The one to blame is him!” The three of clubs accused as he pointed with his painting brush at the two of clubs, who turned even paler as the blame was laid on him. 

“I-it’s n-not my f-fault, it’s A-Ace’s fault!” The two of clubs stuttered and pointed at Riku.

Sora wanted to interfere as the Queen of Hearts turned her furious gaze on Riku. However, like before, Sora’s body refused to listen to him. From his position on the ground he could only watch helplessly as the Queen seemed to lose any patience she still had.

“No, my Queen! It was two!” Riku said as he pointed at his accuser, red paint was dripping from his head onto the floor. 

“I-it’s n-not me, I s-swear! It’s t-three!” The two of clubs accused the other card soldier. 

This seemed to be enough for the Queen as her face turned red in anger. She pointed at the three quivering card soldiers.

“Enough!” She screamed, spittle flying from her mouth. “Off with your heads, the three of you!” 

At her order, multiple card soldiers moved to apprehend the three unfortunate card soldiers and drag them away. The Queen looked on with unconcealed glee as the three struggled while they were pulled along towards their doom. 

“We have no other choice, because you got the colors wrong.” Sora could hear one of the card soldiers say.

“Mistaking white for red was a foolish mistake.” Another agreed. 

Just as the Queen’s cruel eyes turned to Sora, everything faded to black. 

~~

Sora shot up in bed breathing heavily. Next to him, Grim grumbled in irritation, but did not wake up. After The keyblade wielder got his breath back under control, he tried to fall asleep again, but faint impressions of the dream kept bothering him. He couldn’t clearly remember what the dream had been about, but it left him feeling unsettled. Like a warning he should heed. If only he could remember it. 

Giving up on getting anymore sleep, Sora got out of bed and got ready for the day. Though, he still wasn’t able to tie his tie correctly, so he left it untied around his neck. Since it was still rather early, he decided to start making pancakes as breakfast for the others. He had all the ingredients for it, and his fellow first years would probably like it. Who doesn’t like pancakes for breakfast, right? 

Just as he had finished plating the last stack of pancakes, Deuce and Ace entered the room. Ace yawned loudly and muttered a good morning, but perked up at the smell that invaded his noise as soon as he stepped inside the kitchen. Deuce also greeted the other, but sounded far more awake than Ace. Sora returned their greeting with a smile. Though, when Ace noticed the brunette’s untied tie, he moved almost automatically to the other to fix it to the surprise of both Sora, who had frozen at the action, and Deuce, whose mouth fell open. 

“Hi guys, I prepared some breakfast for us. I hope you like pancakes!” Sora said as Ace and Deuce had taken a seat at the small dining table in the kitchen. Then, the brunette set a plate before both teens, to their delight. After getting a plate of his own, Sora also took a seat and set an opened tin of tuna for Grim, whenever he deigned to join them. The boys happily dug into their food, and after the Heartslabyul duo had their first bite, their eyes widened dramatically and they turned to Sora.

“This tastes amazing! I didn’t know you could cook like this!” Ace exclaimed as he enthusiastically shoved more bits of pancake into his mouth. 

Deuce heartily agreed. “Please, Sora, make us food more often?” Deuce almost begged the keyblade wielder.

Not used to getting such praise, Sora’s cheeks turned bright red and he tried to stutter out a reply. “A-Ah, I-I wouldn’t call my food that good, but I wouldn’t mind cooking for you again.” Sora rubbed his head in embarrassment. However, Grim saved the keyblade wielder from any more awkwardness as he entered the room loudly.

“Funya! Do I smell delicious tuna?” Grim asked as he approached the others and sprang on the table. Seeing his most precious tune, he ignored the teens and immediately dug in. 

After they finished eating, someone knocked loudly on the door. The teens looked at each other silently wondering who it could be. Ace just shrugged, while Deuce shook his head. Thus, Sora went to open the door to find out, while the others cleared the table. 

To the keyblade wielder’s surprise, he was faced with Cater’s grinning face as he opened the door.

“Good morning! How was yesterday’s sleepover?” Cater asked cheerfully. “Did you experience youth fully by playing cards and other games?” He continued, but by then Ace, Deuce and Grim had joined them as well. 

“Ugh, Good morning, Senior Cater.” Ace groaned at the sight of his fellow orange head. “Yeah, we played some cards. Grim didn’t know the rules so he kept picking old maid.”

“Damn it…! I couldn’t win at all!” Grim exclaimed sourly, not liking the reminder of his many losses the other night.

“Your face completely shows when you get the joker card, you know?” Deuce added.

“We had a great time yesterday! It really has been a while since I last played any card games with friends!”

“F-Friends…” Ace whispered under his breath. Though he had hoped it was true, he hadn’t thought the brunette already considered him a friend. Especially because of all the trouble he had caused the other. The realization made his heart flutter uncomfortably. 

Ignoring Ace’s internal dilemma, Cater smiled brightly at his juniors. “Aw, man! I wish I could have been there!” Cater whined. “Shall we hurry and bring the tarts we made to apologize to Riddle? Oh, actually, I want you to hurry and come with me because we’re lacking man-power for the party.” Cater continued as he grabbed Sora’s hand and started to drag the teen toward the hall of mirrors. 

The other first years hurried to catch up with the duo. “Man-power?” Ace asked in confusion. 

“It’s nothing, I was talking to myself!” Cater quickly corrected himself. “Let’s hurry and go the Unbirthday Party, boys!” The senior enthusiastically skipped ahead, still dragging Sora along. However, Sora didn’t really mind and easily kept up with the other. After a while he even started to swing their connected hands, making a surprised, but genuine smile appear on Cater’s face. 

As they entered the Heartslabyul dorm, Ace turned to his companions. “Alright, I’ll head on and bring the tart to the dorm leader so I can apologize…..” He started, but trailed of at the sight of….. Cater walking up to them? Flabbergasted, the first years looked from the new arrival to Cater, still holding Sora’s hand. 

“Hey, you’re finally here! What took you so long, me?” The newly arrived Cater asked the other Cater. 

“I’m home! Sorry for the wait, me!” The original (?) Cater said as he waved to his copy.

“Th-There are two senior Caters?!” Deuce managed to get out.

“You were a twin?!” Ace exclaimed at the same time.

“Oh, no. I’m the only male sibling. This is my unique magic, Split Card. I can make clones of myself using magic!” One of the Caters explained. Both Caters had similarly amused smiles on their face at the first year’s hilarious reactions. Sora also looked shocked, but to a lesser degree. The concept of doubles not being all that unfamiliar to him. 

“Welcome back!” Another Cater, greeted as they made their way further into the dorm. How many more Caters could there be?

“Welcome, Sora!” Yet another Cater said and blew a kiss to the brunette, flustering the brunette in the process. 

“It was so difficult!” The first Cater to approach them in the Heartslabyul dorm complained dramatically, throwing himself into Ace’s arms. “You made me wait so long, Acey!”

Ace froze in reaction, before he shoved the other away in irritation. “There’s more of him! If one wasn’t enough already…”

“Don’t be so mean, Acey.” Cater pouted from where he had fallen on the ground. “By the way, the real Cater is me!” Cater informed them as he got up and brushed some dust from his clothes. “Cloning myself is pretty tiring, so I don’t want to prolong this. In any case, it’s off with our heads if we’re late. Come on and give us a hand, please! I’ll take you to Riddle after we’re done.”

“Sure, we would be happy to help!” Sora promised, before the others could chime in. He gave his fellow first years a warning look, when it looked like they wanted to protest. Not wanting to upset the usually cheerful teen, they immediately shut their mouth and wearily looked at him. They hadn’t expected such a tarrying look on the brunette’s face. 

“Alright, let’s get started!” The original Cater cheered and pointed out to the first years what had yet to be done. Sora and Cater looked rather upbeat and talked animatedly to each other as they turned the roses red. However, Deuce, Ace and Grim grumbled as they reluctantly helped them. 

With the combined effort of the Cater clones and Sora and his friends, the remaining white roses were quickly painted red.

“Alright!” One clone chimed, looking quite satisfied at the quick work they made of it.

“Finally, this was the final rose!” Deuce proclaimed with a huff.

“That was tough, but we’re finally done!” Grim agreed as he plopped down on the ground. 

“Great work guys!” Sora cheered from his position next to the original Cater.

“Hm, let’s see….. You all did great!” The original Cater complimented them. “Gold stars for all of you! Thank you for the hard work, freshies! Oh! It’s almost time. Me-army, we’re done for the day!”

“Aye, Aye, sir!” The Cater clones said in unison as they puffed out of existence. The only evidence of them having been there was the smoke they left behind. 

Then Cater started to usher the first years towards the party. As they got closer, Sora noticed that everyone was wearing something other than the school uniform. Cater caught the keyblade wielder’s eye and gave a wink. “It’s the Heartslabyul dorm attire! It’s totally fashionable and very ‘grammable’, right?” He said as the brought out his magic pen. “I’m gonna go get changed too.” 

Then Cater pointed the pen at himself and in a flash of white light, his clothes had been replaced by the same clothes the others around them had been wearing. He was now wearing a red vest with a faint card symbol pattern and underneath it a simple white shirt. Over the vest he wore a rather eye-catching blazer. The left sleeve had a black and white diamond pattern, while the other sleeve was completely black. The body of the blazer was white and its collar was shaped similar to a heart, with the left side red and the right side black. Pinned to the collar was a white rose with what seemed like red paint dripping from it. Around the waist of his white trousers was a black and yellow striped ribbon.

“The Queen of Hearts states that a dress code is necessary for party days, after all! I’ll coordinate your clothes for you as a special service!” Cater purred and before the first years could stop him, he had changed their clothes with a wave of his magic pen. They now wore similar clothes to their senior. The only difference being their vest. While Ace’s vest looked exactly the same as the red one Cater was wearing, both Deuce and Sora were now wearing a black one. 

“E-Eh?” Sora muttered as he looked down at his new clothes. This reminded him a bit of when the good fairies gave him a new outfit… only with less bickering involved. And it looked a lot more fancy than anything he had ever worn before. 

“Whoa…!” Deuce whispered in awe. 

“Dude, this is totally stylish!” Cater explained as he posed for them. His mood had definitely brightened.

“Nyahaha! I look so cool!” Grim said proudly. He was now wearing a ribbon pulled in a bow with one side being black, while the other was red. 

“Don’t forget to offer him the tart, got it?” Cater reminded them, before he lead the group of first years to the clearing in which the party would take place.

There they found the dorm leader sitting in a heart-shaped throne placed in the middle of a long table with all kind cakes and other sweet treats spread out across it. Riddle was wearing a dorm uniform that seemed to differ from the others. He wore a long white coat with the inside being completely red. The red fabric had a similar pattern to the vest that Cater and Ace were wearing. He wore a black-and-yellow striped ribbon around his waist and had a black cape with red lining fastened over his left shoulder. Pinned to his cape was a rose similar to the one on everyone else’s uniform. The most remarkable part of his uniform was probably the small golden crown leaning on the left side of the dorm leader’s head. 

Around Riddle’s table, smaller round tables were placed. Many of the Heartslabyul students seemed to prefer taking a seat at those tables to get as far away from Riddle. Thus, leaving the only available seats at Riddles table. Though, even at his table, the students left plenty of seats close to the dorm leader empty. Trey was the only one who had dared to take a seat close to Riddle and was sitting to his left. They appeared to be discussing something, but they both looked up at their approach. 

“Ah, dorm leader Sora? You are joining us for our Unbirthday party?” The redhead asked.

However, before Sora could explain his presence, Trey jumped in. “Haha, my bad.” The vice dorm leader apologized. “I had wanted to inform you before now. When I explained our dorm and traditions to him yesterday, he expressed his interest in our Unbirthday party. Since I felt sorry for him being alone in his dorm all the time, I invited him. I hope you don’t mind….”

“No, of course not. He’s welcome to join us if he wants to learn about our traditions.” He answered Trey. Then, he turned back to Sora. “Come sit next to me and I will tell you more of what we’re doing today.”

Not seeing a reason to object, Sora took the empty seat to Riddle’s right. Cater followed him and took the seat next to Trey, while Deuce went to sit next to Sora. Ace, who had been hiding behind Cater, let’s out a relieved breath at successfully escaping the dorm leader’s attention and quickly took a seat next to Deuce. Grim was the last to take a seat. He didn’t want to be too close to the scary redhead and sat down next to Ace. His small stature was completely hidden from the dorm leader’s gaze by Ace. 

“Now that everyone has taken their seat, let us toast before we proceed with the croquet match. You all have your teacups?” Not giving anyone the chance to reply, Riddle continued. “Now then, a toast to a day with no birthdays. A toast to the Unbirthday Party!”

“Cheers!” Everyone exclaimed and at the dorm leader’s signal ,raised their cups. 

After everyone had settled down, Riddle turned his attention to Sora. As promised, the redhead started to explain that they celebrated the Unbirthday Party every year on the first day of the school year that none of the Heartslabyul students had their birthday. However, that wasn’t the only time an Unbirthday Party could be held. At the current dorm leader’s discretion, it could be celebrated as many times as they wanted as long as it was nobody’s birthday on that day. Heartslabyul’s Unbirthday Parties were a tribute to the famous Unbirthday parties that the Queen of Hearts used to give. Thus, like her parties, the roses had to be red, the tablecloths white and the dormouse had to be sleeping inside the teapot. Sora listened attentively as the redhead explained all the rules that had to be followed during the party and what difficulties they came across this year. 

Riddle was actually surprised that the other kept his attention all throughout his explanation, though he managed to keep his surprise from showing on his face. Most people would only pretend that they were paying attention so that they wouldn’t anger him, however he noticed it happening most of the time. Since it was not against the Queen’s rules, he was never required to punish them for that though. So having someone finally showing a clear interest to his words felt strangely warm. What was that feeling? 

Having said everything he could think of about Unbirthday parties, Riddle asked Sora about his time at NRC so far. The brunette started to tell him about how he joined the board game club, but was interrupted half way through his retelling of the game he played against the Shroud brothers by the appearance of Ace. The duo had been so engrossed in their conversation, that they had missed Ace’s approach. 

“Um, dorm leader…” Ace said nervously wringing his hands.

“You are…. Ah, the first year who stole my tarts.” Riddle said sourly. 

“Um….I was thinking of apologizing for what I did, so I uh…. I made a new tart to replace the one I ate.” Ace explained as he brought out the marron tart they had made yesterday.

Riddle seemed stunned at that. He hadn’t expected the unruly first year to apologize the right way already. “Hm? I’ll ask just to be sure, but what kind of tart did you make?” The dorm leader asked sounding doubtful.

Ace didn’t notice the tone and smiled smugly at his dorm leader. “Thank you for asking! It’s a marron tart made with lots of chestnuts!”

At first Riddle appeared to be confused, before his expression turned to one of ire. “Marron tart, you say!?” He angrily bit out. “How atrocious!”

The smile slowly fell of Ace’s face. He hadn’t expected the dorm leaders anger. He turned his gaze to Trey, since he was the one to recommend they bake this tart specifically, but he appeared just as confused.

“Rule #562 of the Queen of Hearts. ‘Refrain from bringing marron tarts for the Unbirthday Party‘. This is a capital crime! What have you done!? You’ve ruined a perfect Unbirthday Part!” Riddle screamed at the orange head. 

Ace had started to inch back as the dorm leader lectured him. Both Grim and Deuce had joined him in a show of support…. And to make a break for it if things turned sour. However, Sora was unable to join them as Riddle had moved to stand slightly before him. It made it so that Sora couldn’t get past him without asking the other to move and he didn’t want to make the situation worse by interrupting the other. 

Cater leaned over to Trey. “Oh, man… This is bad… Did you know that, Trey.” He whispered to the vice dorm leader.

“I’ve only managed to memorize until Rule #350. I completely let my guard down. Who’d have imagined there would be rules regarding the tarts, too…” Trey whispered in reply.

“As Heartslabyul’s dorm leader, I cannot simply turn a blind eye towards this appalling rule-breaking. Get those marron tarts away from me at once! And throw those three away from the grounds at once!” Riddle angrily ordered as he pointed at Grim, Ace and Deuce. 

At that Sora jumped up from his chair in shock. He hadn’t expected everything to turn sour so quickly. Was this really the same guy he just had a friendly conversation with. “Wait, you don’t have to throw them out. They’ll probably leave if you ask them to.” Sora suggested trying to calm the dorm leader down. Fortunately, the keyblade wielder’s intervention seemed to have calmed the other a bit. 

“Honestly, how can you be so naive. Didn’t I say yesterday that I have no patience for rule breakers.” Riddle retorted, but seemed to consider his offer. 

“I’ve had enough of hearing all those ridiculous rules! Aren’t you being kinda stupid?” Ace said thoughtlessly. 

Riddle’s face turned almost as red as his hair in anger from hearing those words. “Stupid, you say…?” He asked sounding dangerously calm.

Cater turned as white as a sheet in response and tried to get Ace to abort his tirade. “Hey, stop! That’s an absolute taboo word! Also, Riddle, these guys are just some freshies who got accepted to the school. Take it easy on them.”

Unfortunately, Ace did not heed his words. “Nah, I’m gonna say it. Only an idiot would listen to a rule about tarts. Don’t mess with me!” He retorted angrily. 

“I’m of the same opinion as Ace. Of course, I admit that breaking the rules is not a good thing, but… this is simply too much.” Deuce added as he crossed his arms. 

“How bold of you to talk back to me. Listen well. Even breaking insignificant rules leads to huge problems.” Riddle said coldly. 

Ace scoffed in response and looked around him at the nervous looking Heartslabyul students. “The other residents are afraid of getting their magic sealed so they don’t speak up, but I’m sure they feel the same!”

“Heh, is that so?” The red haired dorm leader asked dangerously as he passed his gaze over the quivering Heartslabyul students, daring anyone to question his rules.

Unfortunately for the orange haired first year, his dorm mates did not give their agreement like Ace expected. 

“Ah no, we would never!” Someone exclaimed, fear clearly tainting his voice. 

“No, we’re….”Another trailed of sounding uncertain how to proceed.

“N-no, it’s not true, dorm leader! We do all we can to follow what you say, dorm leader!” A third student added. Everyone seemed to slowly back away from their angered dorm leader. 

“Tsk… Whishy washy jerks. Lame.” Ace muttered, looking disgusted at the cowardice of his fellow students. 

“Ever since the year I became the leader, not one student from Heartslabyul has ever repeated a year nor was anyone expelled. Only Heartslabyul can say that. In this dorm, I am the one with the highest marks and I am the strongest. That’s why I am the only one who’s always right! There is nothing wrong with following what I say!” Riddle informed them smugly. 

“Eh, that’s actually quite an accomplishment.” Sora said in awe as he moved to stand next to Riddle. However, he looked rather fired up as he said the next words. “But that does not give you the right to treat your dorm mates like this!”

“It’s not like I’m dong this because I enjoy it.” Riddle fired back. “I thought you would understand…..but I might have been wrong.” He said softly before turning his attention to Ace, Deuce and Grim again. “Aren’t you the ones at fault for breaking the rules?”

Nobody answered him, which seemed to anger the redhead even more. “If you’re not going to obey me, then it’s off with your heads!”

Cater tried to get the first years to reconsider their stand to pacify their dorm leader. “Everyone, come on. Just say ‘Yes, dorm leader’.”

“I will not.” Deuce said stubbornly in reply.

“I’ve had enough playing along with this selfish tyrant!” Ace shouted and looked to Sora for support. The keyblade wielder actually looked a bit unsure. On one hand, he did understand why Ace was angry after all the work they put into baking a tart to apologize to Riddle and to have it then destroyed. On the other hand, there was no need to escalate it any further. By insulting their dorm leader they only made it worse and gave him a genuine reason to be angry. Even though Riddle looked furious at the orange-head’s words, he actually seemed to be rather satisfied by Sora’s inaction. Though, Ace looked a bit betrayed at the turn of events. 

“What did you just say….?” Riddle said coldly as his hand moved to grab the staff that had been leaning against his chair.

Grim then voiced his opinion about the redhead, not helping their situation at all. “We’re saying that you’re a hot-headed tyrant that wastes food for his own selfish whims!” Grim shouted. He actually seemed more upset about the waste of perfectly edible food than about the rules the dorm head enforced. 

The cat’s words seemed to be the final straw that broke the camel’s back. Even though Sora tried to apologize for his friends thoughtless words, Riddle ignored him and pointed his staff at the trio before him. 

“OFF WITH YOUR HEAD!!!” Riddle shouted. Standing next to him, Sora could feel the powerful magic that gathered in the redhead before it was released from his staff and familiar heart-shaped collars appeared around Deuce’s and Grim’s necks.

“AAHHH!” They both shouted at the sudden shock they felt from their magic being cut off.

“This collar again…!?” Grim angrily exclaimed as he tried to get it off with his paws, which of course proved to be unsuccessful. “Why. Won’t. it. Come. Off.” He puffed out. 

“Damn it…..We probably shouldn’t have done that….” Deuce muttered to himself as he halfheartedly tried to get if off as well. 

“Trey! Cater! Throw them out of here!” Riddle ordered, which finally managed to shock Sora into action.

“Wait, don’t throw them out! They’ll leave by themselves, right?” Sora tried to intervene as he moved to block Trey’s and Cater’s path to his friends. At this, they both stopped and glanced at each other before turning to Riddle, who only had eyes for Sora. 

“I see, that’s how it is. In the end, you choose the troublemakers. I had high hopes for you…..No matter, I won’t punish you for your disrespect, if you take those three with you and leave now. You won’t be welcome in this dorm again until you’ve seen the error of your ways.” Riddle said, surprising everyone with how disappointed he sounded. Trey and Cater looked so flabbergasted at Riddle’s words that they just watched frozen in place as Sora headed to the equally frozen Deuce, Ace and Grim, and started to drag them along to the mirror. Sora shot one last worried glance over his shoulder at Riddle, Trey and Cater before he moved out of view. 

“He actually let them go…?” Cater said. This was the last thing Sora could make out before he got too far away to hear the reply. 

~~

“Sora?!” Ace exclaimed as the stepped out of the mirror and into the hall of mirrors again. He seemed to have finally regained himself. “Why didn’t you interfere earlier? You would have easily been able to defeat our seniors.” Ace said sounding both hurt and angry.

“Because I don’t like having to fight friends!” Sora shouted, startling the trio. They had never seen the brunette lose his cool like that. “I…I am sorry that I did not stand by you. It’s just….” At this Sora looked away from the others, seemingly lost in his memories. “…. Fighting your friends, it never results in anything but hurt for all parties involved.” Sora finished and looked Ace in the eye. 

Ace could see the anguish in the other’s eyes and let out a sigh. “I am sorry as well. I probably shouldn’t have riled him up so much.” Ace apologized sheepishly, before he scowled again. “But that tyrant just makes me so angry! We shouldn’t have to follow all those stupid rules! Does he plan on turning into the Queen of Hearts himself?!”

“Getting punished for disobeying the dorm leader…. I’m slowly drifting away from becoming a model student…” Deuce said in despair. 

“Ugh, this collar is so suffocating and heavy, yanno?” Grim complained, still tucking at his collar. 

“Y’all look so stylish with you meowtching collars!” Someone said suddenly from behind the quartet. As one they turned around to see…… A floating head?!

“GYAHHHHHH!! A HEADLESS GHOST!” Grim shouted and hid behind Sora’s leg. 

“Oops. I fur-got to bring out my body.” The floating head said before the rest of his body appeared. He was actually a teen around their age with short, choppy purple hair with his bangs cut in a curve. He had a pair of purple cat ears that had multiple piercings. His yellow eyes had pupils that were split like a cat’s and were looking far too amused at their reaction to his earlier appearance. He wasn’t wearing the NRC uniform, but wore a baggy white shirt over a striped purple shirt and blue pants with a purple belt with the sentence ‘Do you stand on your head’ printed on it. 

“Wh-what the… So you actually have a body. Who’re you?” Deuce asked.

“I’m Alchemi Alchemevich Pinka.” The teen introduced himself cheerfully. “I am a great enigma with magic that’s both like a person and like a cat.”

“Alche…. Come again?” Ace tried, but had already forgotten the rest of the cat-eared teens name.

“Everyone calls me Che’nya.” The teen, Che’nya, offered. “At the very least, I’m super different from those guys in there!” Che’nya said with a big smile almost too big for a human. It reminded Sora a bit of the Cheshire Cat he met in Wonderland. Now that he thought about it, even appearing with only his head was rather similar. Were the related in some way?

“Hi, my name’s Sora.” The keyblade wielder introduced himself, still feeling a bit unnerved at the connection he had made in his head. 

Ace didn’t seem in the right state of mind to play nice and made this known to the others. “I’m in a bad mood thanks to the absurd situation caused by the tyrant. Outta my way.” He said rather rudely.

However, Che’nya took no offense. Quite on the contrary actually, he looked rather amused. “Riddle, a tyrant…Fufufu. Well, mew’re not incorrect. He’s been a rather serious one since he was little… Fufufu… Well, littler.”

“Do you know something about it?” Deuce questioned him.

“If you think that I know, then I know. If you think I don’t know, then I don’t.” Che’nya said with a self-satisfied smile as he casually placed his hands behind his head. 

Grim did not look amused at his non-answer and narrowed his eyes at him. “Which is it?”

“What? Ya guys wanna know about Riddle?” Che’nya asked playfully.

“Hell yeah, we do. What kind of upbringing turns you into that kind of tyrant?” Ace bit out, still not over what happened earlier. 

However, instead of answering, the cat-eared teen deflected the question. “You should ask your fur-end with the glasses all about it.” He said as he pointed back to the mirror they had just stepped out of. 

“You mean senior Trey?” Sora asked.

Che’nya nodded in reply. “He’s known Riddle since he was a wee little thing. If mew wanna know about Riddle, he’s the one to talk to.” 

Everyone thought it over, trying to imagine the kind senior together with the strict dorm leader.

“They were childhood friends? It didn’t seem that way at all…” Deuce said after a moment of thought.

“Well, they were sitting next to each other earlier, and they seemed to get along before we arrived.” Sora offered. “But that might have been because senior Trey is the vice dorm leader…. “

“If mew think so then it must be so.” Che’nya added sounding quite cryptic again. “So there’s nothing for mew to talk to me about meow is there. See mew!” As he uttered his last words, his body started to disappear again, leaving only his head visible. He chuckled creepily before his head faded out of sight as well. 

“Going to class with those collars should be no problem.” At this Deuce looked pointedly at Ace. “So let’s go ask senior Clover about it after class. Plus…”

“It’s super lame to go and apologize again, so I’m not doing that!” Ace exclaimed.

“Do any of you know where Trey would be after school?” Sora asked choosing to ignore Ace’s proclamation. 

“I heard he spends a lot of time in the library.” Deuce offered.

“Then let’s meet there after class to ambush him!” Ace proclaimed and the others gave their agreement. Plans made, they left for there classes….. After they had changed back into their school uniform.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, so that was another long chapter. Wow, it was both difficult and easy to write. I actually had trouble with deciding how the interaction between Riddle and Sora would go and I took a somewhat different route from canon, with Sora not immediately siding with his friends, since he actually started to like Riddle a bit during their short talk before the fight broke out. And in my opinion, Sora probably would be a bit of a pacifist after all the fighting he has been (somewhat involuntary) involved with in the past and if something can be resolved peacefully, he would probably go for it. So at the end of the fight both Ace and Riddle would have been in the wrong in Sora’s opinion. Riddle for enforcing the rules so harshly without any exceptions, and Ace for his many insults of Riddle, which only made the other even more mad at him. I hope I made Sora’s though process somewhat clear to you all after explaining it both here and in this chapter itself and I hope you like what it resulted in. And sorry (not sorry) for the bit of angst at the end of the Unbirthday Party part. It just felt right.
> 
> And it was so much fun writing Che’nya. I loved how Shel_BB translation had all those cat puns. I couldn’t leave those out. So full credit for all those cat puns goes to them! 
> 
> I actually had to cut this chapter short, since it was starting to become too long and the part I had originally planned to add would have been rather long as well, and I did not want to rush it. So I can’t fulfill my promise I made last chapter about introducing another one of my favorite characters. That would have to wait until next chapter.


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi, everyone. Sorry for the wait. I started drawing again, which I hadn't done in years until I started this fic and wanted a suitable drawing of Sora for it. So I try to divide my time between writing and drawing, but sometimes a drawing just captures my focus and refuses to let it go...
> 
> Since my usual beta was busy, this chapter hasn't been beta read by anyone (except myself), so there might still be some mistakes I've missed. But I didn't want to make you wait any longer, so here we are. 
> 
> Anyway, hope you enjoy this chapter.

Class went……well. Okay, Sora had a hard time with the theoretical side, but he tried his best and he promised himself to study hard. Potions was a whole different experience. Master Crewel actually allowed them to brew a potion already. According to the man, it was an potion that even the most foolish puppy couldn’t screw up, the Invigoration Draught. When brewed correctly it is supposed to boost the drinker’s energy. 

They worked in pairs that were assigned by their teacher. Fortunately, Sora was partnered with Epel, who already had some experience with brewing potions. It was mostly thanks to Epel that the duo managed to turn in an almost perfect potion. Though, that didn’t mean that Sora didn’t help. He was attentive to his partner’s instructions and managed to progressively get better the longer the duo worked. 

Contrasting starkly with Sora and Epel’s success, was the potion belonging to Jack and Grim. It was just an unsalvageable disaster. To their teacher’s horror and dismay, they even managed to melt their cauldron, which shouldn’t have been possible with the ingredients available to them. Sora really didn’t want to know how the pair had achieved that, but if Jack’s angry scowl was any indication, it was probably Grim’s fault. 

Anyway, except for their potion class nothing exciting happened. Sora was able to bring Epel and Jack up to speed on what happened during the Unbirthday Party. Both appeared shocked at the unfortunate and unexpected turn the party had taken and offered their help in ambushing Trey after class. However, Sora waved them off. He didn’t want to overwhelm their senior and risk him not wanting to talk to them. Even though he seemed so nice yesterday, the way he effortlessly and convincingly lied hinted to a different, maybe not so pleasant, side of him.

After classes had ended for the day, Sora and Grim said their goodbye to Epel and Jack and made their way towards the library. The keyblade wielder happily greeted Ace and Deuce, who were already waiting. They returned his greeting, however Ace seemed to be in a bad mood, but managed to bite out a greeting anyway. It seemed that he still wasn’t over what happened earlier.

As the quartet entered the library, they noticed how enormous the room actually was. It even had a second floor. There was no way they could find their senior in a reasonable time if they stayed together. Thus, they decided to split up, Deuce stayed at the entrance in case Trey wasn’t there yet, while Ace, Sora and Grim headed farther into the library. Though, Ace headed off to the second floor when they reached a staircase. The orange head hesitated for a moment, looking like he wanted to say something to Sora, but decided against it at the last moment and left. It somewhat hurt the keyblade wielder to see his friend just dismiss him like that, but they had more important things to focus on, so he shoved it to the back of his mind. With an almost single-minded focus, Sora continued his search for Trey. Better to keep busy to prevent his thoughts from drifting off to dangerous territories. 

To Sora’s surprise, not a lot of people were in the library today. Maybe because it was only the first week of the school year? It’s not like Sora was any better in the past. Hopefully, it would make it easier to find their senior. If the rumors were to be believed and he was actually here, anyway.

Eventually, Sora found Trey in a section with all sorts of cookbooks, which really should have been the first place to look for their senior. He asked Grim to get Ace and Deuce, while he went to greet the Senior. The cat grumbled in irritation, but complied anyway and hurried along the hall.

“Senior Trey!” 

At Sora’s sudden shout, Trey almost dropped the book he was holding. Thankfully, he managed to catch it just in time. The green-haired teen turned in surprise to Sora, but his surprise quickly faded into a smile as he recognized the keyblade wielder. 

“Hey, Sora. What can I do for you?”

In stead of answering immediately, Sora looked over his shoulder to see if the others were approaching already. Unfortunately, there was no trace of them yet. So it was up to Sora for now. Okay, he could do it, Sora thought as he nervously rubbed his head.

“Ah, um…. After yesterday I was kinda… um… ya know….. curious about Riddle and why he’s so strict about his rules. Is it only because he admires the Queen of Hearts or is there something else…..?”

Trey looked a bit flabbergasted at the other’s insightful question. However, before he could gather his thoughts and formulate a response, they were interrupted by hurried footsteps. Ace came to a sudden stop next to Sora, looking a bit out of breath.

“Senior Trey! We found you!” Ace said between deep breaths. “Tell us more about Riddle! Have you always been enabling him like this since you were kids?”

Any response was waylaid by the arrival of both Deuce and Grim, who appeared on Sora’s other side. 

“Please, senior Clover.” Deuce said and gave Ace a reproachful glare. “We would like to learn more about our dorm leader to try to understand why he is the way he is.”

Trey looked both amused and shocked at the questions. “How do you know that I’ve know Riddle since we were kids? No one here at NRC should know that, unless…..” Trey muttered the last part under his breath.

“Some teen with purple hair and cat ears told us that. He said that we could call him Che’nya.” Sora replied.

Ace huffed in irritation at this. “He also told terrible cat puns.”

Sora frowned at Ace in reply. “I actually thought they were funny… But anyway, do you know him, Trey?”

“Che’nya?” Trey muttered sounding deep in thought, his brows furrowing in concentration. “Ah, that guy.”

“Aren’t you also older than Riddle? Just get angry at him. Yeesh!” Grim grumpily admonished their senior.

At this Trey’s expression turned sad. “I’d do it if I felt it necessary. But…..” The senior looks away, as if lost in his memories. “….I can’t bring myself to scold him.”

“Why!?” Ace exclaims as he takes a step threateningly towards the senior. However, his path was quickly blocked by Sora’s arm. Sora decided to interfere, before Ace really lost his temper.

“Why won’t you scold him, senior Trey? You must have a reason?” Sora asked, sounding for more willing to listen than Ace.

“This could take a while to explain. Why don’t we take a seat at the table over there?”

They all complied to his suggestion. Sora ended up sitting next to Trey, while Ace and Deuce sat down across from them. Grim had taken a seat on the table itself. After everyone had taken their seat four pairs of eyes turned expectantly towards the green haired teen, who cleared his throat in preparation for a long explanation.

“Well, everything Riddle is was ‘made’ by following strict rules. In his homeland, there isn’t a single person who hasn’t heard of his parents. They are rather famous healers, after all. His mother is especially famous and well respected. She wishes for Riddle to be the same. So from dawn to dusk, his mother decides his every move for him, down to the smallest thing, as part of a study program.” As Trey talked, his voice became more and more strained. 

Grim’s eyes widened in shock. “Geh…Everything…?”

“That sounds unpleasant…… Why would his mother go so far…?” Sora said in bewilderment. Were there really parents that would go to such lengths just to turn their child the way the want. 

Trey smiled sadly at Sora. “She thought it was the only way for him to follow in her footsteps. Thus, she decided everything for him, from what he could eat, to what he should wear and even what sort of friends he could make. In order to answer to this parents expectations, Riddle kept quiet and did his best. And by the time he was 10 years old, he had perfected that unique magic of his. On top of that, he has maintained his spot at the top since elementary school. I can’t even begin to imagine how difficult that must have been.” Trey let out a sigh. 

After Riddle’s rather tragic backstory, a heavy silence settled. Everyone looked lost in thought, not having expected the dorm leader to have such a depressing and controlling home life. It didn’t sound like a healthy environment for any child to grow up in…. It definitely explained Riddle’s almost desperate adherence to the Queen’s rules. Sora vehemently hoped that the punishments that Riddle’s mother gave weren’t anything bad, but he feared that his hopes would be dashed. 

Sora was the first to break the silence. “That’s kinda……harsh.” Sora finished lamely, unable to find the words to voice how he really felt about Riddle’s situation. He didn’t want to bring his fears into words. That would make them real, after all.

“Riddle thinks being bound by strict rules is for one’s own benefit. He was bound by harsh rules and still became a leader, so he believes it will work for anyone… And that means breaking the rules is utterly unacceptable. I mean….”

“Because if he overlooks the rule-breakers, it’s as if…. As if he’s denying everything that he was made to be…..Right..?” Ace finished the senior’s thought process, sounding uncharacteristically thoughtful.

“But doesn’t that also mean that his strictness is well-intended. That he only wants his dorm mates to excel, as he has excelled….” Sora added.

As Trey listened to his juniors he started to look rather relieved and maybe even a bit hopeful. “…. I understand why you’d think of him as a tyrant, and I understand that the way he does things is a little wrong, too. But, I… I still can’t find it in myself to go against him.”

Tears had gathered in Grim’s eyes and he let out a resigned breath of air. His anger at the dorm leader seemed to have left him. “Funyaaa…”

“So the dorm leader endured all that….” Deuce sounded sympathetic to the dorm leader’s plight. 

“After hearing all this, I finally understand.” Ace looked quite somber, before his expression suddenly turned stormy. He clenched his fists tightly as his eyes met those of their senior. “The way Riddle now is, it’s your fault!” Ace pointed a finger accusingly at Trey, to the surprise of everyone. “Riddle had no say in who his parents were. But you’ve at least thought that the way his parents treated him was unfair, right?”

“That’s….”

Ace didn’t let their senior get a word in before he continued his angry tirade. “If you think that the dorm leader is making the same mistakes as his parents, then tell him that. Fix your mistakes. What have you accomplished by feeling sorry for poor Riddle and indulging him? Nothing!” The orange head ranted at Trey. To Sora’s surprise, it actually sounded like he defended the dorm leader’s actions and held Trey responsible instead, which was quite a change from his stance just minutes ago. “You’re just going to watch, while he becomes hated and isolated from everyone.” Ace final words at least seemed to elicit a reaction from Trey, who had up to this moment just bared with the dressing down Ace gave him. Anguish briefly flashed in the senior’s eyes, before he got his emotions back under control. But that was enough to show Sora that he did seriously care about his childhood friend.

“H-Hey…Ace!” Deuce tried to warn Ace to tone it down a bit.

Unfortunately, Ace took no heed of his warning and bulldozed on. “Or what? Are you keeping quiet ‘cause you’re afraid of losing your head? You’re an asshole! You call yourself his childhood friend, but the way things are, you’ve got no right to call yourself his friend. I hate people like you!”

Sora couldn’t bear hearing Ace’s hateful words any longer. They served no other purpose than making Ace feel better about himself and hurting Trey in the process. Or at least it seemed like that to the brunette. “That’s enough, Ace. I know he has to face the truth, but you don’t need to be so cruel about it! You don’t know why he hasn’t interfered yet. He might have a good reason….”

“Like you had a good reason for siding with Riddle this morning!” Ace retorted angrily, but seemed to regret it the moment the words slipped past his lips. Sora’s expression turned uncharacteristically vacant as the words registered to him. “I…. Uh…I-I didn’t mean to….” Ace spluttered in distress, seemingly spooked at the other’s blank expression. 

Fortunately for Ace, they were interrupted by the sudden appearance of their headmaster?! He looked furious as he loomed over them. “YOU BOYS! THIS IS THE LIBRARY, SO KEEP IT DOWN, PLEASE!” The headmaster shouted, immediately contradicting his own words. 

“You’re the one shouting here, yanno.” Grim pointed out what everyone was thinking.

Crowley actually seemed taken aback at being reprimanded by the cat monster. “Oops, apologies.” He didn’t sound sorry at all. “My goodness, the library is for quiet study or reading.” The headmaster reprimanded them in a rather loud whisper.

Sora, who had looked rather blank up until now, put on a fake smile. He seemed to fool his fellow first years with his returned cheerfulness, but not the headmaster and Trey, if the curious and worried glances they shot him respectively were to be believed. “Sorry, headmaster. I promise we will be quieter from now on. What are you doing here anyway?”

“I’m glad you understand. By the way, what are you all doing here with such grim faces?” The headmaster completely ignored Sora’s question as he took a seat at their table.

Deuce let out a sigh. “About that…” He started and explained the situation to Crowley. While he listened, the headmaster had put a hand under his chin and seemed to let all sink in. 

“I see, so that’s the situation….. You’re against apologizing to get the collar removed, but you don’t feel that you can persuade Riddle to let this go without fuss.”

“Yeah, that’s about right.” Ace confirmed.

“So then, if you don’t think you can compromise with the dorm leader, you have the option of transferring dormitories. However, the mirror of Darkness is the one that judges based on what it sees in your soul, so it’s actually quite a herculean task to transfer dormitories.” Headmaster Crowley explained cheerfully before a calculating glint appeared in his eyes and he turned to Sora. “Though, there is another possibility you might try. You know, that keyblade you wield. It might be able to free your friends from their collars, since it is after all shaped like a key. Why don’t you give it a try.” Crowley suggested looking expectantly at the keyblade wielder, who had turned pale at the suggestion. 

The others also turned their hopeful eyes, or in Trey’s case curious eyes, towards the brunette. This seemed to make Sora even more nervous.

“Uh….I-I… don’t think that would work….” Sora said, his voice trembling.

He didn’t like the look Crowley was giving him. It seriously gave him the creeps. Though, that wasn’t the only reason that made him hesitant to agree. He was also afraid what he would reveal if he did indeed manage to unlock their collars. If he understood the dorm leader’s unique magic correctly, then the collar was a physical manifestation of Riddle’s ability to seal of other people’s magic instead of being just a normal collar. Thus, if his keyblade could potentially unlock the collars, then that would mean that it was able to negate other people’s magic, which it shouldn’t be able to do….. At least he thought so. But it was able to lock a world’s keyhole, which wasn’t a real lock as well…… At the moment, everyone believed the keyblade to just be a rather fancy magical focus, but it might reveal more than he was comfortable with, especially to the headmaster, if he used it to unlock the collars.

His fellow first years hopeful expressions had slowly fallen, while Sora had his external crisis. They had clearly been waiting for his enthusiastic agreement, which he hadn’t given to their disappointment. For Ace his dismay had even turned into anger. However, before the orange haired teen could voice his probably not so nice thoughts, Trey interfered. 

“Why would Sora’s keyblade be able to unlock their collars. It’s just a magical focus, right?” Trey asked the headmaster, when he sensed Sora’s increasing distress. The brunette had stood up for him earlier and he seemed happy to return the favor. “Unless he has an unique magic that negates other people’s magic, he won’t be able to. So it would be a waste of time to even try, right? It might even backfire on Sora if he tries.”

“I guess you have a point…” Ace trailed off, his temper cooling down. 

Crowley looked chagrinned at the turn of events, but hid it quickly. Though, Sora was able to catch a brief glimpse of it. “Very well. Then how about challenging little Rosehearts to a duel and then taking the title of dorm leader for yourself?” The headmaster offered instead, leaving everyone flabbergasted.

“How is the dorm leader position decided here in Night Raven College?” Deuce asked, seriously considering this option. 

“I head them say that Riddle managed to be the dorm leader one week after getting in.” Grim added.

“They can either be appointed by the previous dorm leader, or they can win a duel against them. However, there are also other ways, I’d say.” Headmaster Crowley explained.

“If I remember correctly, it’s forbidden to enforce a handicap on your opponent before a duel starts, so you can have the collar taken off without apologizing to Riddle. Ah, but….” Trey looked worried at the thought of the duo fighting Riddle.

“New students are given the right to challenge their dorm leader should they want to. What will you do, Mr. Trappola? Will you challenge him?” 

“Alright, then. I’ll show him who’s boss!” Ace said, his voice rising in the end, but with a warning look from the headmaster he managed to tone it down in time. Then, he suddenly stood up, his chair scraping over the floor, making a loud screeching sound. 

In solidarity, Deuce stood up as well. “I’ll do it as well!” He proclaimed.

Grim jumped from the table to stand next to the duo. “Me, too!”

Then, the headmaster coughed in his fist, trying but failing to cover up his laugh. “Unfortunately, you’re from a different dorm so you can’t participate, Grim.” The headmaster announced sounding for too smug for Sora’s liking. 

The cat’s ears drooped in response. Even the usually bright flames on his ears seemed to dim slightly, reflecting his somber mood. “Wha-? Then who’s gonna take my collar off!?”

Ace turned to look at Grim and offered him a smile. “If I become dorm leader, I’ll order Riddle to take it off for ya!”

This seemed to perk the cat up a bit, but he still muttered something under his breath. However, Sora was too far away to make out what he said.

Trey looked dubiously at the duo. “Are you guys serious? I didn’t think that you’d agree with them Deuce.”

“Really? As a man, wouldn’t it be great to aim for the top at least once? I’ll do my best for the team if we’re gonna go ahead and challenge him.” Deuce said in response.

“Are you really sure this is the way you want to fix this mess?” Sora said, hoping they would change their mind. He wanted to believe in his friends, but he had felt Riddle’s magic during the Unbirthday Party and Ace and Deuce were rather outmatched. Though, Sora had won some of his own fights even with the odds against him, he didn’t know whether his fellow first years would be able to. They certainly had less to lose if things went south. And maybe if they finally managed to work together without squabbling between themselves, they could actually do it. 

Ace, who was still holding some bitterness for the brunette’s actions at the Unbirthday Party, turned to Sora, ready to voice his annoyance. However, when he noticed the worried look in the other’s eyes, he seemed to reconsider his words. “You don’t have to be so worried!” Ace eventually said, trying to reassure Sora. “So, do you guys have any good ideas?”

“Hm… I feel like the dorm leader will win if we go with magic. If we go physical, then we have a chance of winning.” Deuce offered after thinking it over for a bit.

“True, he looks fragile.” Grim added.

However, it couldn’t be quite that easy. The Headmaster just had to dash their hopes. “Oh, I forgot to mention. Any attacks aside from magic are forbidden.” Crowley announced with a shit-eating grin. 

“Eh?” Deuce said, not sure if he heard the headmaster correctly.

“Hahaha! Let’s have a fun duel while playing by the rules!” Headmaster Crowley added cheerfully. He clearly enjoyed the twin looks of despair his statement caused on the Heartslabyul first years. “I shall finish telling you everything tomorrow before the duel, so please be timely in informing me at what time the duel will take place. Now then, please excuse me.”

Ace and Deuce had stiffened upon hearing this new piece of information. Their previous confidence suddenly gone. The headmaster gave one final smug grin, before he turned around, his coat flaring dramatically behind him as he left. 

“A-alright….! I don’t have the confidence if it’s magic, but….. We’ll manage somehow!” Ace said, putting on some false bravado as he clapped Deuce on the shoulder.

“Y-Yeah!” Deuce added after a beat of uncomfortable silence.

“My neck’s at stake here, so you better do your best!” Grim threatened.

Trey looked dubiously at the duo. “You guys….”

Sora wanted to support the pair as well, but before he could voice his offer of help, Ace had grabbed Deuce by the arm and pulled him along as he rushed out of the library. Grim hot on their heels. Sora let out a wary sigh. “I wanted to offer my help…..” The keyblade wielder muttered dejectedly, but was surprised by the sudden hand on his shoulder. When he looked up, he met Trey’s sympathetic gaze. 

“Don’t worry, they’ll probably be fine by themselves. It’s not like you would be able to teach them any useful spells in just a day.”

“I guess you’re right.”

Trey squeezed Sora’s shoulder before removing his hand. “I’ll be on my way as well. Don’t let those two get you down so much and enjoy the rest of your day. Maybe take a walk across the school grounds.”

Sora nodded absentmindedly, as Trey left him to his thoughts. Some fresh air to clear his mind did sound nice. He could explore a bit, maybe he could see if here were any moogles here. They were after all present in most worlds he had visited. Or at least one of their holograms was. Maybe they could help him get into contact with his friends. 

His mind made up, Sora set out to follow Trey’s suggestion to explore the school grounds. Maybe he would even run into Ace, Deuce and Grim….

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you all enjoyed this new chapter! I had a lot of fun writing it, even if it took a while. To make up for it, the next chapter (which is almost finished), will be posted later this week. It will also include a little surprise that I hope you like!
> 
> The potion I mentioned is one I got from the Harry Potter wiki, since I couldn’t come up with one myself. Though, in Harry Potter it was brewed by fifth years, it is supposed to be rather easy to do by yourself. So I imagine the NRC first years could do it as well, provided they work together and get clear instructions. And aren’t idiots like some first years we know…..
> 
> Huh, this chapter has a lot of angst, maybe I should add it to the tags. But anyway, I hope you enjoyed it. I had a lot of fun writing this and sorry for the wait. I try to update one of my Twisted wonderland at least once a week, but I can’t always make it in time. I’ve rediscovered my interest in drawing, so that takes up a lot of my time as well.


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As promised here's another chapter of We’ll walk together towards dark unseen (and our hearts will be our guiding key) already! Again, it is not beta read, since my usual beta is still busy.
> 
> I really enjoyed writing this chapter and I hope you enjoy it as well! And thank you everyone for leaving a comment or kudos! It really motivates me to keep the chapters coming. And I can't believe this story is already almost at 200 kudos. I would never have expected it to be so well received when I started writing this story. It means so much to me to know that you enjoy it!

Sora was following along a path on the edge of the NRC school grounds. So far, he had no success in finding any moogles. Though, he didn’t let that deter him from continuing his search. To his dismay, he also hadn’t come across any of his friends yet.

As the keyblade wielder was more focused on looking at every nook and cranny, Moogles could be in the strangest of places after all, he didn’t notice the student in his path. That was until they had run into each other, quite literally.

Sora lost his balance from the impact and ended up falling on his butt. When he looked up, his eyes met a familiar pair of heterochromatic eyes. But, weren’t the colors supposed to be switched? As his gaze traveled over the other teen, he noticed more things that deviated from the Octavinelle vice dorm leader. His shirt was not buttoned all the way and it was untucked as well. Furthermore, he didn’t wear a tie and his blazer was unbuttoned. This was in stark contrast with the meticulous way that Jade had been previously dressed. Then, the keyblade wielder suddenly remembered that Jade was supposed to have a brother. This was probably him. What was his name again….?

What Sora hadn’t noticed was that the other Leech brother had been studying him as well. At first, he looked rather irked to have someone run into him, but when he noticed who it was, his mood shifted drastically.

“Eh, aren’t ya the lil’ angelfish that rescued crabby and baby seal from falling to their death?” The as of yet unnamed Leech brother asked cheerfully as he towered over the teen still on the ground. When he spoke, he revealed a set of razor sharp teeth, to Sora’s fascination.

Sora got up from the ground and smiled brightly at the Leech brother, whose eyes widened in surprise at that.

“I don’t know who that are, but I did prevent Ace and Grim from crashing to the ground with the chandelier the other day. And I’m Sora, by the way. Nice to meet you! You’re Jade’s brother, right? What’s your name?”

The leech brother looked stumped for words for a bit, unable to handle the brightness off the teen before him. “Hehe, those were indeed who I meant.” He scratched his head in though. “ Hm, you want to know my name? I guess I can tell ya. Name’s Floyd.” Then his mood seemed to suddenly flip around and he smiled brightly at Sora, showing his sharp teeth again. “Hey, Hey, why don’t we play a game? I want to see how strong Angelfish really is~! You look so small and fluffy that I want to squeeze you!” Floyd reached out and ruffled Sora’s hair. “It actually is as soft as it looks!” Floyd said, wonder clear in his voice as his fingers continued running through brown locks.

Sora subconsciously leaned into the contact. It actually felt rather nice and Floyd wasn’t as rough as he would have expected from his behavior so far. He seemed to take great care not to hurt the brunette. And Floyd teen seemed to like it as well, if his continued ministrations were any indication.

“What do you want to play?” Sora asked after Floyd finally stopped petting his head.

“A game of tag~! I like giving chase and I want to see if those stories of you jumping so high in the air are true!”

Sora agreed easily. It had been a while since he last played tag after all. The last time was probably when he was young and still living on Destiny Islands before he had even heard of a keyblade. When everything was easy and uncomplicated.

To make things somewhat fair, they settled on the rule that magic could be used as long as they didn’t cast at each other, but only on themselves. Fortunately, Floyd didn’t seem to mind the addition of this specific rule, he just wanted to get the game going. Sora was allowed a ten-second head start, which he made great use of. He quickly ran across the empty field and towards the school. He had a plan, you see, but that plan required walls. The ten seconds were over far too quickly and Floyd managed to catch up quickly using his long legs. Fortunately, at that point Sora had just arrived inside the school building. There, Sora went through halls at random, until he finally reached a dead end.

To Floyd’s surprise, Sora choose to enter a corridor with a dead end. The teal-haired teen’s mood started to sour, clearly disappointed that his greatly anticipated chase would be over so soon. That he had been wrong about the other’s strength. To his immense surprise, Sora did not slow down as he drew closer to the wall. However, instead of running into the wall, like Floyd had expected him to, he just ran….up the wall?! Without changing his pace at all. Well, if that was how he was going to play, then Floyd would up his game as well.

Sora used Floyd’s bewilderment to his advantage and ran along the wall to a window that had been too high to reach from his position on the ground and jumped through it. He continued on running on the wall on the outside of the school building, shocking passersby. However, Floyd was not to be outdone, as he quickly emerged from the same window and continued his chase from the ground. This went on for a while, with Sora using his flowmotion abilities to run across walls and to jump from surface to surface, sometimes using a wall, other times a nearby tree, and Floyd following right along using his incredible physique and experience in parkour to keep up with the other’s erratic movements. At one point Floyd even shouted in joy, when he almost got a hold of Sora, but the keyblade wielder managed to evade him again, by launching himself into the air at the last moment and faulting over the other. The teal-haired teen had a large manic grin on his face as the chase continued.

Eventually, after almost an hour of constant running, Sora was distracted by Ace calling out to him in worry, and missed his next jump. Instead of hitting the intended tree, Sora face-planted in the grass next to it. Sora spat out the grass that ended up in his mouth and made to sit up, but was pushed to the ground again by the large body colliding with him.

“Hehe! Got you~!” Floyd giggled in his ear as he his arms wound up around the other.

Sora tried to wiggle out of his hold, but only managed to turn his body around, so now he was chest to chest with Floyd. As the brunette noticed how close their faces were Sora’s cheeks turned bright red, to the fascination of the other.

“You turn almost as red as goldfishie~! I wonder why?” Floyd mused as he leaned even closer so his nose touched Sora’s.

“Hey! What do you think you’re doing to him!” Ace yelled as he arrived next to the duo. He immediately tried to pull Floyd from Sora, but it seemed futile. It looked like the only way Floyd was going to move was of his own volition or with the use of magic.

“Crabby! What do you think you’re doing? Do ya feel like getting squeezed?” Floyds turned his gaze towards Ace and narrowed his eyes threateningly. Though, he did get up from the ground and pulled Sora to his feet along the way. Not having expected the sudden movement, the brunette wobbled on his feet for a bit, but Floyd steadied him by pulling him close to his body in a one armed hug. “Thanks for playing with me, Angelfish. It was the best game of tag ever! Let’s do it again sometime! See~ya!” Floyd said and with one final squeeze of Sora, he released the brunette and left without giving Sora the chance to get a word in. Flustered, Sora looked at the other’s retreating back, trying to make sense of the whirlwind that was Floyd Leech. He was shaken from his thoughts by the hand on his shoulder.

“Hey, are you alright?” Ace asked worry coloring his voice. “He didn’t hurt you, right?”

Sora shook his head to clear his thoughts and met Ace’s gaze head on. “Nah, we were just playing a game of tag….Maybe it was a bit extreme for tag, but it was a lot of fun.”

“Then why did you end up on the ground? With him on top of you?!”

“Haha…. I got distracted and lost my footing.” Sora answered, rubbing his head in embarrassment. “And Floyd was it and decided to tackle me to win the game.” He said as if that explained the other’s behavior. Well, it did in a way…. If you knew Floyd well.

Ace still looked like he didn’t believe it, but he decided to let it rest for now. He excitedly told Sora that he and Deuce were able to practice their magic with Grim’s help and that they were finally able to coordinate their attacks. If they used their newly found cooperation tomorrow, they might actually stand a chance against their dorm leader, according to Ace. Though, Sora doubted that was true, he was still happy for them and congratulated the orange-haired teen on their success.

Ace looked away at that and muttered something too low for Sora to hear. When Sora asked him to repeat himself, Ace finally turned to face the brunette. He looked troubled by something as his eyes met Sora’s. Then, he suddenly bowed from his waist and apologized to Sora for how he had behaved earlier and that he didn’t mean what he had said. The orange-haired teen explained that he was lost to a haze of anger and let his emotions get the better of him. To apologize, he had prepared dinner for tonight with the help of Deuce and Grim. Though, in the end, they ended up seeking out Trey’s help as well, since none of them actually had any experience with cooking.

Sora was bewildered at how far the other would go for his apology and also rather touched at the sentiment. Although, Sora didn’t think it was necessary to go that far just to apologize to him, he accepted it anyway and let himself be led by the orange-haired teen towards Ramshackle dorm.

Sora arrived to a nicely set table for four persons. Some dishes were already placed on the table and Grim and Deuce were moving from the kitchen to the table, carrying more.

“Hey, guys. Look who I managed to find?” Ace said with a grin as he stepped around Sora and joined the others.

“Eh, you’re already here? I hadn’t expected you yet.” Deuce said in surprise, but offered the brunette a smile in greeting anyway.

“Well, honored guest, why don’t you sit down, while we get everything ready. I promise it won’t take long.” Ace said with a flourish and pulled a chair out for Sora.

Sora tried to offer his help, but they quickly waved him off. He sighed dejectedly, but was smiling to brightly to take his sigh seriously, and took the offered seat. He watched his friends bustle about around him for a little bit, before they finally placed the final dish on the table and took a seat as well. They had really exceeded Sora’s expectations with what they had prepared. Instead of just one easy dish, they had prepared multiple small dishes that would be shared among them. What surprised Sora even more was that most of the dishes included some type of fish. They remembered what his favorite food was. The realization that they cared enough to remember made the food taste even better.

Thus, the day ended with a pleasant dinner with Ace, Deuce and Grim. Even though everyone was nervous for what the next day would bring, they managed to let go of it for the moment and enjoy the evening. After dinner, they wanted to keep hold of the pleasant mood for just a little bit longer and decided to play some card games again. Even the ghosts, drawn in by their laughter, joined them for some games. Though they weren’t especially good at it, they did seem to enjoy themselves and appeared happy to be included.

Later that evening, after all the fun had ended, Sora laid awake in his bed. The others had already retired to their own beds and Grim was curled up next to the brunette sound asleep. However, Sora hadn’t managed to drift off yet. Worry for tomorrow was keeping him awake. He hoped everything would turn out okay, but something was telling him that his hopes would be dashed. Eventually, exhaustion caught up to him and the next time he closed his eyes, they didn’t open again for a couple hours. He had finally fallen asleep.

~~

As Sora opened his eyes, instead of the expected ceiling of his dorm room, he saw a familiar place. He was in the Queen of Hearts’ courtroom in Wonderland. The one she had Alice’s trial in. That was the moment Sora realized that he was dreaming again. Thus, when he noticed that he had no control over his body’s movements, he did not panic like last time.

From his position, he could see that he was standing on the exact witness stand that he had first seen Alice on. Did that mean that he had been playing Alice’s role in those recurring dreams? On either side of him stood two card soldiers carrying heart-shaped spears. Though the form of the spearhead was strange, it did look rather sharp.

Right in front of the brunette was the Queen of Hearts. She was seated high up in a dais looking down on everyone. At the moment, she didn’t look angry, but from Sora’s experience, that could change in a heartbeat.

From another dais, on the Queen’s right, a familiar white rabbit sounded his trumpet, gathering everyone’s attention. “Court is now in session.” He nervously declared and shot the Queen a look.

“I’m on trial? But why?” Sora said, involuntarily playing Alice’s part.

The white rabbit ignored him and continued with his announcements. “Her Majesty, the Queen of Hearts, presiding!”

“This girl is the culprit. There’s no doubt about it. And the reason is……” The Queen took a deep breath. “…Because I say so, that’s why.”

“That’s so unfair.” Sora exclaimed.

The Queen slammed her heart-shaped staff on the railing. “Well, do you have anything to say to your defense?“

“Of course!” Sora said sounding indignant. ”I’ve done absolutely nothing wrong! You may be Queen, but I’m afraid that doesn’t give you the right to be so…. so mean!”

After hearing the keyblade wielder’s insult, the Queen’s face quickly turned red in anger. “Silence!” She yelled, spittle flying from her mouth. “You dare defy me!” Large fists were slammed on the railing, dangerously shaking the whole dais. “The court finds the defendant guilty as charged!” Then, she pointed her hearts-shaped staff at Sora and smiled in satisfaction. “For the crimes of assault and attempted theft of my heart…. OFF WITH HER HEAD!“

“No! No! Oh, please!” Sora begged as card soldiers started to surround him, cutting off any route of escape.

Unlike how this ordeal had ended in the real world, there was no one to save Sora. The card soldiers who had been guarding him, grabbed both of his arms, restricting his movement. Even if he could control his own movements, there would be now escape for him now. Their grip was inescapable, as they dragged him towards the Queen, who had descended from her dais. The card soldiers had the keyblade wielder kneel before their Queen as she smiled down on him. However, before she could give the order for Sora’s execution, a dark ink-like substance appeared beneath Sora’s feet. It quickly spread across the ground, surrounding the teen and causing the card soldiers to release him and jump away in fright. Not being the one in control of his body, Sora could do nothing but look on in fear as what he presumed to be ink crawled up his legs. Everywhere the ink touched started to feel cold, like the warmth was stolen from his body. As it rapidly advanced along his figure, Sora’s vision started to lose focus. At first, his body only felt cold, but it slowly turned into numbness. Whether it was from the cold or in reaction to the ink covering his body was unclear. Right before he was completely swallowed up, he was overcome by helplessness and fear. Even though he knew that he was dreaming, it still deeply frightened a part of him. It just felt so real…..And maybe also familiar?

~~

The next time Sora regained consciousness again, he was drifting in a sea of darkness. What felt like hours passed, but it could just as easily have been the blink of an eye. Time seemed to have lost meaning to the teen. He was left with nothing but his thoughts and the overwhelming fear that had taken a hold of his body.

As his panic and fear was about to reach an all-time high, he heard a voice. A voice he could recognize anywhere. Riku’s voice echoed around the empty space, without a clear source.

“ _All right, Sora has gotta be here…..somewhere.”_

_“I’m counting on you, Sora.”_

_“Sora can find the brightest part of anything, and pull off miracles like there’s nothing to it. It’s pretty hard not to smile around him.”_

_“Sora! Don’t! You’ve gotta wake up! Sora!”_

_“Come on, Sora. I thought you were stronger than that.”_

_“Sora, don’t chase the dreams. They’ll lead you nowhere, just to an abyss you’ll never be able to wake up from.”_

Riku’s voice was loud in the silence, different sentences overlapping each other. Frantically looking around himself, Sora tried to find his best friend. But he couldn’t ‘find him. What was Riku trying to tell him? There seemed to be no coherence to the different fragments the keyblade wielder could make out. Maybe they weren’t said in real time. Maybe they were just a collection of….. memories? Riku’s memories?

Whatever they were, they seemed to pull Sora from the darkness withing himself. He felt lighter than he had felt in a long time. His fear was slowly being replaced by hope, the longer he listened to his best friend’s voice. He still had a connection with Riku and if there was a connection, then they would surely find each other again. With renewed determination, Sora tried to swim upwards, to the light that had appeared on what might have been the surface. Unlike before, the keyblade wielder was finally able to move his body again and he slowly started to make his way towards the light that beckoned him. Just as his hand was about to break the surface, the light suddenly brightened, blinding Sora.

When the teen could see again, he was looking at a familiar ceiling, the one in his dorm room. Confused, he sat up and looked around. For the first time since he started having these strange Wonderland dreams, he could remember it after waking up. He could also remember the strange segment at the end. What was that substance? Was it ink like he first suspected. Similar to what had created the ink monster in the Dwarf’s mine? Or was it Darkness…..with a capital D?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It was fun to write the scene with Floyd. I just really like Floyd, even though I found it kinda hard to write him. I hope I did his character justice in this chapter. So now Sora has finally met both Leech twins, though not at the same time. 
> 
> I actually wrote the dream sequence, before writing the beginning of this chapter. I don’t know why, but I was really inspired for it. I tried to combine a bit of what happened during Alice’s trial in Kingdom hearts and my own idea’s. It was so much fun to write! Especially the last part of the dream, in which I could really let my imagination go wild. What Riku says are direct Quotes taken from multiple KH games that I thought would suit this situation. 
> 
> And how did you like my little surprise art? I had so much fun writing that part that I was inspired to draw something for it as well. It was actually supposed to be just a colored in sketch, but… eh….. I kinda went and made it rather detailed. I even drew separate blades of grass at the places that both of them made contact with the grass to make it more realistic. It has been a while since I really drew like this, so I’m still trying to get the hang of it again. I’m probably going to make more fanart for further (or previous) chapters, since it’s a great way for me to practice again and I want to share my art with you! I hope you enjoy it! For larger sizes of my art (or just to contact me to talk) you can visit my twitter @Mystra_Cosplay where you can also find some of my cosplays.
> 
> Next time will finally be Riddle's overblot. I'm looking forward to writing it!


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the wait. I had a hard time writing this chapter. Since my beta is wasn't able to proofread it and I was really unsure about some parts of this chapter and couldn't ask her for advice (which I would normally do in this case), it took some time before I was somewhat satisfied with this chapter. But to make up for the wait, I am happy to present you with a long chapter. I hope you enjoy it!
> 
> On another note, I was wondering if there is someone who wants to help me as a beta reader and someone who I can discuss ideas with? As I mentioned before, my normal beta reader isn't able to do it for a while since she's sick (no it's not corona, but something that leaves her with little energy for pretty much anything, so I don't want to bother her with this), but I could really use the help in getting my work online sooner. And it's always nice to talk ideas with multiple people. So let me know if you're interested!

“Oh, you’re awake, Sora!” Grim said from next to Sora, startling the teen. For once, the cat was actually awake before the keyblade wielder, while sounding uncharacteristically cheerful. 

Sora rubbed sleep from his eyes, still a bit troubled by his dream. 

“Good morning, Grim.” Sora tried to sound his usual cheerful self, but was failing miserably. Fortunately, Grim was rather oblivious to human behavior and didn’t notice Sora’s forced cheerfulness. 

“Hurry up! The sooner we finish classes today, the sooner we can get these collars removed.” The cat monster said as he jumped off the bed. 

After Sora got ready for the day he met up with Ace and Deuce. The both of them looked rather nervous, but they put up a confident front as soon as they caught sight of Sora. The day passed by in a blur, until finally the moment had arrived. Ace and Deuce were going to challenge their dorm leader. 

Sora had his last class of the day together with 1-A, so he was able to head towards the Heartslabyul mirror together with Ace and Deuce. To everyone’s surprise, Epel and Jack had decided to join them as well. They wanted to be there in case something went wrong…. They seemed to doubt the odds of Ace and Deuce winning against Riddle and were anticipating the resulting trouble that would cause. Furthermore, they had also become rather protective of the brunette, since Grim had told them about the fight Ace and Sora had yesterday, to the protest of both of them. This caused them to stick close to Sora with Jack even going so far as to throw his arm around the brunette’s shoulder, causing Sora to, almost unwillingly, relax against him. The solid presence calmed his frayed nerves slightly, reminding him that he was not alone….That he was not still trapped in his dream. 

As soon as the group stepped through the mirror, they could hear excited whispering from the Heartslabyul students that were gathered around the garden. 

“Hey, did you hear? Someone challenged dorm leader Rosehearts to a duel!”

“THE dorm leader?! I can’t imagine it. It’ll probably be over in a flash.”

“But this is the first challenge he’s ever gotten. Let’s go watch!”

“Who would be stupid enough to challenge the dorm leader?” 

At the last comment, Ace seemed to puff up in anger and made to move towards the perpetrator. However, before he could, he was stopped by Deuce grabbing his sleeve and pointing to the approaching figures of their seniors. He wordlessly reminded the other to be on his best behavior. 

“Acey and Deucey were guided by the Headmaster into challenging Riddle to a duel? Are you serious?!” They could hear Cater comment to Trey, sounding exasperated. 

Trey let out a sigh, sounding exhausted. “I tried to stop them, though…”

“Geez, now they’ve done it…. I hope this won’t turn out for the worst..” Cater muttered dejectedly in reply. Whatever Trey answered was lost to the sounds of the crowd that had started gathering as they moved further into the garden. 

Sora and his friends headed further into the garden as well and eventually reached the area the duel would take place at, the Rose maze. The same place the disastrous Unbirthday Party was held. The headmaster was already there when they arrived, standing in the middle with Riddle at his side. Trey was standing next to his dorm leader, with Cater standing a bit behind them. When Crowley caught sight of them, he motioned them forwards. When the group complied, they could see many Heartslabyul students spread around the center of the maze, leaving a clear space empty for the duel. 

“I hope you’re ready for this duel, Mr. Trappola and Mr. Spade, for it’s too late to reconsider now.” The headmaster then turned to Sora, Grim, Epel and Jack. “Ah, I see you’ve come to support your friends. Why don’t you join the other onlookers at the edge of the field. The duel will start soon.” 

Sora couldn’t help himself and gathered both Ace and Deuce in a hug, catching them by surprise, though, they quickly returned the hug. At Crowley’s meaningful look, Sora released them, his cheeks flaming red. Ace and Deuce weren’t faring any better, since their faces had gone rather red as well.

“Good luck!” Sora uttered, his voice an octave higher than normal, before he hurriedly grabbed Epel and Jack by the hand and pulled them away. Grim looked between Sora and the Heartslabyul first years, unsure what just happened.

“Ya better make sure ya win! I don’t wanna wear this collar any longer…” Grim grumbled, before he ran off to join the others. 

Deuce and Ace shared a look, still somewhat bewildered by the unexpected hug, and turned towards their headmaster. 

“Now then, I shall be watching over the duel about to take place here in the Heartslabyul Dormitory.” Headmaster Crowley said as he theatrically threw open his arms. The spectating students immediately fell silent and looked expectantly at their headmaster. They looked excited for the duel, though if the earlier whispers were to be believed, they were hoping to see Ace and Deuce be utterly humiliated in the upcoming duel. “The challengers are Ace Trappola and Deuce Spade.” He pointed at Ace and Deuce, who squirmed a bit at all the unfriendly looks that turned their way. “The one who accepted the challenge is the current dorm leader, Riddle Rosehearts.” Then, the headmaster pointed at Riddle. “Now then, please remove the collars in order to start the duel with no handicaps for both sides.”

At Crowley’s order, Riddle pointed his pen at both Ace and Deuce and released his spell. The collars clanked open loudly and disappeared in a shower of sparks.

“The damn thing’s finally off…!” Ace exclaimed as he rubbed his newly freed neck. Deuce was doing the same thing next to him. It actually looked like a burden had been lifted from their shoulders, like the return of their magic immediately made them feel better.

“It will be back on you in a little while, so I’d say you best enjoy it while you can.” Riddle looked condescendingly at the duo before him. “I almost doubted it when I heard that you had challenged me to a duel. Are you really serious?”

“Of course.” Ace replied without missing a beat. 

“We would never challenge you as a joke.” Deuce added with a frown.

“Hmph, never mind. Let’s get started quickly.” 

“Riddle, what should we do about our afternoon tea?” Cater suddenly asked.

The dorm leader looked over his shoulder at the senior. “That won’t be a problem. Afternoon tea will be as always at exactly 4 PM.”

“But, it’s already past 3:30…” 

Riddle looked incredulously at Cater. “Do you think I’ll be late for anything in my life? I’m pretty sure this will be over quickly.” Then the dorm leader turned to face Ace and Deuce again. “As you can see, I don’t have enough time and taking you on one at a time will be too time-consuming. So come at me, both of you.”

The crowd seemed to agree with their dorm leader as multiple students shouted their support for him. 

Being dismissed so callously seemed to irk Ace, while Deuce only looked to be slightly uncomfortable. “We didn’t come here without a plan, you know!” Ace exclaimed.

Though, Riddle ignored both of them and addressed Crowley. “Headmaster, please begin at once.“

The headmaster motioned for Ace and Deuce to proceed to one side, while Riddle should move to a place across from them, leaving enough space for them to throw spells at each other. Then, Crowley moved to stand in between both parties and revealed a hand mirror.

“The moment this hand mirror falls to the ground, the duel will start. So……Fight!” He shouted the last word as he released the mirror. As soon as it hit the ground, Ace and Deuce fired of their spells simultaneously. Deuce summoned a large cauldron, which Ace launched at the dorm leader using his wind magic. The cauldron proceeded at high velocity towards the dorm leader. However, Riddle didn’t seemed to be bothered in the slightest. With only a brush of magic he was able to stop the cauldron in its tracks. 

Deuce looked on in shock, his mouth hanging open, as their carefully planned attack was stopped almost effortlessly. Fortunately, Ace didn’t hesitate and continued on with their plan. He launched another wind attack, but aimed it at a spot just next to the dorm leader this time. While Riddle made to reflect this attack as well, Ace quickly fired off another wind attack, but this time at the dorm leader. However, he had underestimated the redhead, who clearly saw through the other’s trick. He quickly deflected the first attack and cast his own fireball at the other to not only counter the incoming blast of air, but to launch his own attack at Ace as well. Distracted by dodging the fire ball, Ace was unable to prevent himself from being collared as he laid on the ground breathing heavily. 

Unfortunately, Deuce didn’t last too long after that as well. Even though he had overcome his initial surprise, he was unable to prove a challenge to the dorm leader. He could only hold off on being collared a little longer than Ace by launching Cauldrons at Riddle, but that tactic didn’t work for long. Since Riddle didn’t want to waste any more time and risk being late for his afternoon tea, he decided to end it quickly and shot lighting at Deuce just after the other had cast his next cauldron, paralyzing him briefly. Then the dorm leader effortlessly moved out of the cauldron’s path and cast his unique magic at the paralyzed teen, who was unable to defend himself. 

In the end, the fight barely took ten minutes. Sora, Jack, Epel and Grim looked on in horror, while their friends were beaten. They were so outclassed, it wasn’t even funny. The only silver lining was that Riddle didn’t aim to hurt them, but to just end it as quickly as he could. 

“Damn it..! Can he do nothing else but seal other people’s magic?!” Ace muttered dejectedly from his position on the ground. He rolled over so he was able to push himself to a standing position again and walked over to Deuce.

Lightning still sparked slightly across the blue-haired teen’s body, as he slowly gained control of his limbs again. “To think that we couldn’t even do anything….! All our careful planning was for nothing….”

“It went by so quickly…. Riddle is quite the powerful mage-uh-magician.” Sora muttered. Jack and Epel hummed in agreement. 

“Ones magic strength comes from the strength of their imagination. The stronger they imagine the result of their magic to be, the more successful it will turn out. Little Rosehearts here has clearly shown how much he has polished his magical skills.” The headmaster explained. “Unlike the two of you….” He added under his breath. 

“Ah….The difference in their power levels is just too much…!” Grim said as his ears drooped in disappointment. “How will I get rid of this stupid collar now…”

“Hmph, that didn’t even take 5 seconds. I’m surprised that you went and challenged me with your skill level. Aren’t you embarrassed?” Riddle asked looking quite smug. As the duo refused to answer him, even going so far as to look away, he looked even more smug. “I knew it. Anyone who breaks the rules will always amount to nothing. It is as mother said.”

“…It’s true that rules should be protected.” Deuce suddenly said, his voice starting of soft. “But, strictly implementing every single nitpicky rule you can find is called oppression!” The blue-haired teen stood up with the help of Ace and glared at Riddle.

“Huh? There is a punishment for rules that are broken. And I am this dorm’s absolute rule. That’s why, those who break the rules have no right to complain to me!” Riddle retorted.

“But you’re wrong, Riddle. Even though people who break the rules should be punished, it shouldn’t happen indiscriminately. Everything isn’t always that black and white, but they’re varying shades of gray as well….” Sora trailed off, unsure how he should continue to make the other see sense. 

Riddle set his slate gray eyes on Sora. “No one will follow rules that are lenient! What sort of lessons were you given that you can’t even understand something so simple as this?” Riddle said sharply. “I thought you might understand this, but I see those two hooligans you keep hanging around are a bad influence on you. How pathetic, truly. You might redeem yourself if you stay away from them from now on. They will only drag you down after all. They’ve already dragged you into danger with their shenanigans.”

“Damn you…!” Deuce exclaimed angrily.

“I’VE HAD ENOUGH OF YOU!!!!!” Ace suddenly shouted, startling everyone. However, what he did next was even more unexpected. He approached the dorm leader and before anyone could even think of interfering, he punched Riddle in the face. The resulting sound of skin-hitting-skin resounded loudly as everyone looked on in disbelief.

“Eh….?!” Riddle carefully touched his cheek, which had already started to turn red. 

“Riddle!?” Cater and Trey exclaimed in unison. The green-haired vice dorm leader even made to move towards Riddle, but a hand on his arm held him back. Trey and Cater shared a grim look, conveying without words that this won’t end well. 

“He… He punched the dorm leader?!” Multiple students muttered as they looked on at the spectacle before them.

“That was a pretty clean right hook!” Grim said with a large grin as he hurried towards Ace and Deuce, who had resumed his position next to the orange-head.

“A-Ace!?” He sputtered as he caught sight of the Ace’s cold expression. 

“Ah, I’m tired. I don’t care about you or this duel anymore.” Ace said as he looked Riddle in the eye.

Riddle still seemed somewhat disorientated as he met the other’s gaze. “Ouch…Eh? You…punched me…?”

Looking ready to fire off another rant, Ace took a step towards the dorm leader. “Kids aren’t their parents trophies. Your parents aren’t the ones who get to decide what you’re worth. I finally understand that you being a trashy person isn’t your mom’s or dad’s fault at all! And the one to blame is the bastard you call a friend, who did nothing but turn a blind eye to your selfishness!” At that, he pointed accusingly to Trey, who looked away in guilt. Whispers quickly started to spread through the crowd as people looked to their vice dorm leader. However, their attention was quickly recaptured by the orange-haired first year. “Growing up under your obsessive mother was probably some kind of hell, but is ‘Mama this’ ‘Mama that’ really all you can say?! Are you not capable of thinking for yourself?! To hell with that ‘Crimson Ruler’ bullshit! You’re just a baby who happens to be gifted with magic!”

Up until now, Riddle had silently listened to the other’s harsh words, but the last insult seemed to be the tipping point. His eyebrows furrowed in anger as he tried to process that someone dared to call him out like that. “Baby, you say…? Me…!?” Riddle’s voice had grown surprisingly calm, belying his anger. “You don’t know anything…” He started to say, until his expression turned thunderous. “You don’t know anything about me!”

“Yeah, I don’t. I don’t know a damn thing!” Ace retorted. “Do you think I’d know anything with that attitude of yours? Don’t be stupid.”

Sora watched on in horror as the two argued. His gut was telling him something was about to go horribly wrong, which was supported by the building pressure in the air. Was it magic? Why did nobody else notice it? As Sora was about to step forward to try and stop the argument from growing even further, he was held back by Epel and Jack. As he looked from one to the other, he only got strained smiles in response. However, his attention was quickly diverted back to Riddle.

“Shut up, shut up, SHUT UP! QUIET!! Mother is right! That’s why I am also right!!!” Riddle screamed as his cheeks turned red in anger and his gripped on his magic pen tightened, though a familiar hand on his shoulder seemed to calm him down a bit. 

“Riddle, calm down. The duel is already over.” Trey said to his dorm leader as he gave Ace a warning glare to shut up.

The headmaster nodded in approval. “Vice dorm leader Clover is right. Any attacks done outside of the duel will nullify your victory. If you continue to do any more than this, you will be breaking the rules!” The warning seemed to work as intended and the redhead took a deep breath, trying to calm himself. However, his regained calm wouldn’t last long.

While Riddle was calming himself, the crowd of Heartslabyul students seemed to grow agitated. 

“I agree with the newbie! I’ve had enough of this, too!” One of them shouted. Others quickly joined in and voiced their agreement. As the crowd got more rowdy, someone even produced an egg from somewhere and threw it at the dorm leader, hitting him right in the face. Riddle’s eyes widened in disbelief, egg yolk dripped from his face.

“W-what? Why would someone do something like that?” Sora was able to break free from the his friends and made his way towards Riddle. As he reached the redhead, he pulled a clean tissue from his pocket and offered it to the teen, who accepted it absentmindedly . The dorm leader began to absentmindedly clean his face, while still trying to understand what had occurred. 

“What was that….? An egg….? Did someone throw that?” Trey cast his gaze over the crowd, looking for the perpetrator. 

Riddle, now with a somewhat clean face, looked around with a glare. “Who did it! Who threw this egg?”

“I did, and I would gladly do it again! I’ve had enough of the dorm leader’s dictatorship!” A Heartslabyul student shouted as he stepped away from the crowd. The students in his proximity cast nervous looks at him and slowly backed away from him.  
This seemed to be the wrong thing to say to the dorm leader as he burst out in laughter. 

”Hahaha, HA HA HA!! You’ve had enough? I’m the one who’s had enough!!” He shouted with a completely mad look on his face. “No matter how many times I take off your heads, no matter how strict I become, you all keep breaking the rules! This guy, that guy, you’re all selfish idiots! Fine, have it your way. If you don’t want to follow my rules anymore, I’ll just punish all of you! Then it’s off with all your heads! Starting with you!” The red head screamed in a shrill voice and pointed his magic pen at the student who had confessed to throwing the egg. “OFF WITH YOUR HEAD!!”

A collar appeared around the students neck, however he wasn’t the only that was the target of the dorm leader’s ire. As Riddle was blinded by anger, he continued casting his unique magic on the other students in the crowd.

“AHHHH! RUN AWAY!!” Someone in the crowd of panicking Heartslabyul students shouted. In the resulting chaos, Jack and Epel managed to escape the crowd unscathed and were able to join Sora at Riddle’s side, which was probably the safest place to be for now. Sora tried to get the redhead to stop his angry tirade, but he wouldn’t listen and kept on punishing his students.

“Urk….! The collar is….!” A recently collared student exclaimed as he fell to the ground from the force of the dorm leader’s unique magic. It seemed that in his anger, he wasn’t able to control his power output and as a result he put too much force in his spells.

“Ahahaha! How’s that! Now none of you can raise a hand against me! I knew it! I’m the only one who’s right because I protect the rules!” 

“Desist, Rosehearts! Not following the rules is unlike you at all!” The headmaster tried to reason with Riddle, but his words weren’t able to reach the dorm leader in the slightest.

Cater bit his lip in worry as he looked to Trey. “Trey, this is looking bad….. If he uses anymore of that magic, he’ll…”

“…Riddle, enough!” Trey said as he took a step towards the redhead. 

“Hey, you! Not everything will go the way you want, you know!? This tantrum is exactly why I called you a baby!” Ace added, being rather unhelpful in cooling the dorm leader’s temper.

This seemed to be the last straw for Riddle. His face turned red from anger as he set his burning gaze on Ace. “Take that back this instant! Do you want to be run through.”

Ace didn’t seem able to stop himself from riling the dorm leader up some more. “No way! Absolutely not.”

Riddle could only shrieked in fury, unable to form any coherent words in his state. A dark miasma had started to gather around the redhead. Cater was the first to notice. “This is seriously bad! Everyone get outta here!” He shouted, trying to urge the others towards safety. However, it was far too late. The miasma that had gathered around Riddle had started to grow, until it had covered the whole maze. It swirled around the trees, hedges and more importantly the students, leaving goosebumps in their wake. Trees started to float around the garden, while students looked on as it all happened, frozen in their tracks and unable to move. 

“Waaah…The rose trees are all starting to float around the garden…! Grim said as he hurried towards the safety of Sora’s legs. He was shaking like a leaf, while he gripped the brunette’s leg tightly. Trying to reassure the cat, Sora placed a hand on his head. 

“What distorted magic….! Is he really going to come after us with all that!?” Deuce said, his eyes wide and frightened. 

“Rose trees, heed my call! To pieces with them all!!” Riddle chanted as the floating rose trees started to float around him. On his command, multiple trees launched themselves at Ace, who stood frozen in place as he watched their rapid approach.

“This is bad! Get out of the way!” The headmaster shouted in warning.

“Ace, no!” Sora shouted as he jumped before Ace and summoned his keyblade. He was prepared to defend his orange-haired friend, however the incoming attack never hit. Everyone watched in stunned silence as playing cards fell out of the sky. The approaching trees had been turned into playing cards? Sora caught one of the falling cards. It looked and felt like a normal card. Wait….Was this Trey’s magic he was feeling from the card….?

“This is….!?” Riddle muttered as he looked skywards.

Ace blinked rapidly, trying to process what was happening “H-Huh…? I’m alive…? Sora, you were….” The orange-haired teen said as he looked at the brunette standing before him. Then, the cards floating in the sky caught his attention. “What are these?! Cards…!?”

“All those trees turned into cards!” Deuce exclaimed. “This is…”

Trey crossed his arms. “Riddle, that’s enough.” He simply stated with a stern look aimed at the redhead. 

It looked like Cater caught on to what had happened, as his eyes widened. “Trey’s ‘Doodle Suit’!? Eh… What’s going on…?”

“The magic sealing collar is gone too!” Grim suddenly exclaimed as his paws frantically patted his neck.

“I told you. My ‘Doodle suit’ can overwrite anything for a short period of time. So…. I overwrote ‘Riddle’s magic’ into ‘my magic.’” Trey explained. 

“You’re kidding…. That’s possible!? It’s a cheat!” Cater exclaimed with a pout.

Riddle didn’t seem to pay them any attention as he frantically tried to use his unique magic. “Off with your head! I said, off with your head! Why are cards coming out!?”

“Riddle, please stop this. If you go any further, you will lose everything! Look at everyone’s faces!” Trey gestured at all the frightened students huddled in a corner trying to get as far away from the dorm leader as possible. 

“W-was he seriously going through with it…” One student whispered, despair clear in his voice.

“H-he w-went way t-too far…” Another said, voice trembling.

“A m-monster…” A third student whispered as he shook like a leaf. 

In response, Riddle grit his teeth. “Huh…? Trey overwrote my magic…? Does that mean your magic surpasses mine?”

“There’s no way that’s true! Riddle, calm down and listen to what they’re saying.” Trey tried to reason with his dorm leader, but it was to no avail. Riddle seemed too far gone in his anger to listen to reason anymore. 

“So you want to tell me I’m wrong, too?” Riddle laid the emphasis on the word ‘you’, clearly feeling betrayed by his vice dorm leader. “Even though we’ve been upholding these strict rules this whole time?” He closed his eyes “I’ve been enduring and enduring and enduring this whole time! I…I…I don’t believe you!” When he opened his eyes again, they had grown cold. Heavy magic started to gather around him again, making the hairs on Sora’s arm stand on end. 

However, it appeared Sora wasn’t the only one to feel the rise in magic pressure. “Mr. Rosehearts, you mustn’t.” The headmaster warned. “If you keep using magic, your magic crystal is going to be covered in ‘blot’!”

“I am….I AM!! Absolutely, definitely CORRECT!!!” Riddle shouted. The magic crystal on the pen he had been tightly gripping the whole time started to turn black. What began as a small spot, quickly spread over the whole crystal, until not even a fleck of the original red color remained. When the crystal had completely turned black, ink started to emerge from it. From a slow drip, it quickly increased in volume as it fell on the ground. It crawled up the redhead’s body, uncomfortably similar to what had happened to Sora in his dream, until he was completely covered in it. However, that wasn’t the only place the ink had started to gather. From behind the red head, a hug monster started to emerge. It’s shape appeared to be vaguely similar to the Queen of Hearts, though it had a glass head filled with ink…..like the one the ink monster had in the Dwarf’s mine. 

As soon as Riddle’s figure was completely covered in ink, it suddenly disappeared by being absorbed into his skin. However, instead of revealing his usual appearance again, Riddle looked different. Gone was his white dorm uniform, instead Riddle wore a red and black dress similar to the Queen of Hearts’ attire. A magical fire emerged from Riddle’s right eye and as he was floating above the ground, ink could be seen dripping from his legs and gathering in a puddle below him. However, this ink was quickly absorbed by the ink monster behind the dorm leader, making it grow even larger. Riddle in turn, seemed to grow paler. Was this ink monster stealing the redhead’s life energy?

“What happened to him? What is that monster behind him?” Sora asked no particular person, though he hoped the headmaster had an answer. 

However, before anyone could answer him, a bone chilling laugh echoed around the garden, freezing everyone in place. 

”Those foolish enough to disobey me, I have no need for them in my world.” Riddle said with a crazed look in his eyes. The magical fire pulsed ominously, underlining his words. “I will not tolerate any answer aside from, ‘Yes, Lord Riddle’! It’s off with the heads of everyone who defies me! AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!”

Everyone looked on as the redhead seemed to lose any semblance of control he still had. “Ah, how could this happen?! How could I let a student go into Overblot while I am here?!” The headmaster muttered to himself, despair tainting his voice. 

Sora looked at the headmaster in surprise, wondering whether the man actually knew what was going on. “What’s Overblot?” 

“Overblot is the one situation that all magicians should avoid. Right now, he has been enveloped by so much negative energy that he’s lost control over his emotions and magic.” Headmaster Crowley explained.

“I don’t really get it, though!?” Grim exclaimed looking troubled.

“Me, too!” Deuce added.

Deciding to be helpful, Cater tried to explain it so the less academically included students would be able to understand. “Ah, geez! In other words, it’s like an evil villain berserker mode!”

“If this goes on, Riddle’s life will be in danger!” Trey added, clearly distressed and worried for his friend’s life.

“What!? We got to help him!” Sora cried out. “That monster behind him…..is that the manifestation of Riddle’s negative emotions? It seemed to get stronger while Riddle looks to be getting weaker. If we destroy it, are we able to safe Riddle?”

Though Trey and Cater looked happy at the brunette’s offer for help, the headmaster sadly shook his head. “While that might very well work, the other student’s lives take more priority at the moment. We have to get them to evacuate from here before they become collateral in Riddle’s Overblot. Losing his life is absolutely not what I want, but even worse is…..” The man looked away at that. “In any case, you boys go get the rest of the staff and dorm heads to help control the situation.” The headmaster instructed Sora, his friends and the two Heartslabyul seniors. 

However, to everyone’s astonishment Ace was the first one to voice his disagreement. “I won’t let that bastard die before he can apologize! TAKE THIS!!!” He shouted and launched a swirling vortex of green wind energy at the ink monster behind the redhead. Not having expected it, Riddle was unprepared to defend against it, so the attack hit the monster head-on. Though, it didn’t seem to actually hurt the monster that much.

Deuce seemed to agree with his fellow first year and pointed his magic pen at the monster as well. As his grip tightened, magic gathered around him. “COME FORTH, CAULDRON!” 

With a sweep of his arm a cauldron launched itself at the monster. However, a blue fireball joined the fray at the same time. It seemed that Grim had decided to pitch in as well. Sora shared a brief look with Epel and Jack, before he readied himself and summoned his keyblade again, while his friends grabbed their magic pens and prepared for battle. 

Seeing the first years so willing to risk themselves to save Riddle, Trey stepped forwards as well. “You guys… I can overwrite Riddle’s magic again for a short time. When that happens, you have to defeat that monster quickly before Riddle regains control of his magic again. I won’t be of any help to you while I use my unique magic, so I’m counting on you.”

Trey’s words seemed to finally shock the headmaster in action. “Wait a minute, you boys! That’s dangerous!” He uttered sounding shell-shocked. 

“He’s right! What are you saying, Trey? There’s no way they can win against Riddle! Even with your help…” Cater sounded uncharacteristically serious as he tried to get them to change their minds. Though, neither of their words seemed to have any effect. Their minds were already made up. Realizing this, Cater reluctantly offered his help as well, to make sure they wouldn’t get themselves killed, he muttered under his breath. 

“Ah, good grief….. I’ll return as soon as I escort the others to safety, so please stay safe until then, all off you!” The headmaster said as he made his way towards one group of terrified students and started to lead them out of there. He must have used some sort of magic, since one minute they were there, and the next moment they were out of sight. Maybe he had concealed them so Riddle wouldn’t notice their escape and target them. 

Riddle had temporarily paused his attacks during their discussion, since he had been distracted by Ace, Deuce and Grim’s attacks, though his patience had finally reached its end. “Every single one of you is getting ahead of yourselves……Off with your heads!” He shouted as he renewed his spell casting on the terrified students.

Sora watched on with worry as the redhead grew visibly weaker the longer he continued casting magic, while the ink monster behind him steadily grew in size. It had already reached almost twice Riddle’s size and it didn’t appear to stop growing. It probably wouldn’t stop until it had absorbed all of the redhead’s magic……

“We have to do something quickly before it’s too late.” Sora voiced his thought, tightening the grip he had on his keyblade in worry. His eyes met Trey’s, who look just as worried.

“Riddle’s body won’t last much longer. We have to stop him quickly or else….” Trey whispered. “I can’t lose him yet. I…. There’s something I still have to tell him!” The greenhead readied his magical pen and signaled to the other’s that he was about to cast his unique magic again. However, it appeared Riddle had run out of easy targets to collar, since a rose tree was suddenly launched at the group. They had to jump apart to avoid it, interrupting Trey’s spellcasting. 

They had all ended up in different corners of the garden, with Jack and Cater on the left, Epel and Trey on the right and Sora, Grim, Ace and Deuce in the middle. Though, Sora had landed the closest to the volatile redhead, who took advantage of the opportunity. Before the keyblade wielder could react, a long vine had wrapped around the teens body. Thorns pierced his skin as he struggled to break free. However, his struggles were in vain. Even with his enhanced strength, he was unable to escape from the vines. He couldn’t even move his keyblade, since his movements were completely restricted. He didn’t like feeling so helpless, but he couldn’t think of a way to free himself. As he looked around himself, he saw how his friends had frozen in shock. He knew that it was dangerous for them to become distracted, while Riddle was still so volatile, but if they didn’t snap out of their shock soon, they were likely to get hurt. 

“Uh, guys….Maybe a little help here?” Sora asked trying to get his friends attention. 

Sora’s worried voice prompted everyone into action. Trey was the first to act and made to cast his unique magic again, however Riddle had foreseen this and used another vine to distract the green-head, while the dorm leader pulled Sora closer. This also made it impossible for the others to attack Riddle without the risk of hitting Sora as well. Fortunately, Jack appeared to have come up with a plan, which he quickly conveyed to Cater. The keyblade wielder watched attentively while Jack and Cater worked together to attack the vine that was keeping Trey from casting his unique magic. 

Though, Sora couldn’t dwell on it for long. A sudden touch on his face drew his attention towards the redhead again. The gentleness of the caress surprised the brunette and made him turn his head towards the other, trying to make eye contact. When he caught a glimpse of Riddle’s face, he could see the other’s lips moving, but all Sora could hear was nonsensical muttering. As he tried to listen more intensely, he started to make out words. 

“Please……stay….don’t…..me…”

Was Riddle asking Sora to stay with him? Why? Sora really didn’t understand what was going on, but he wanted to help the other. However, he noticed something else as well. Riddle was rapidly growing weaker. His skin had grown unnaturally pale and the teen looked like a strong breeze would blow him away. It appeared the magic swirling around the teen was the only thing keeping him upright. 

Suddenly, Sora fell on the ground. The Vines that had kept him in the air had disappeared, while he was looking at Riddle. As the brunette absentmindedly rubbed his injured arms, smearing blood on his hands, he tried to understand what had happened. He quickly caught on when he saw Trey pointing his magic pen at Riddle. The green-haired teen was using his unique magic to overwrite the dorm leader’s magic again, like they had planned. However, this time the strain seemed to be much harder on Trey. Sweat had gathered on his forehead and the arm holding up his magic pen visibly trembled. They had to hurry if they wanted to use the opportunity Trey had provided them…… Riddle hadn’t much time left after all before it was too late. 

Sora pushed himself off the floor, summoning his keyblade again in the process. Determination shone in his eyes as he looked at his friends around him.

“Everyone, fire everything you have at the ink monster’s head! It is its weak spot! We don’t have anymore time to lose!” The brunette shouted before he jumped into the fray. 

Maneuvering between his friends spells, Sora managed to hit the glass head multiple times. He tried to target spots that were already weakened by magic spells to maximize the damage he was able to deal. Fortunately, their efforts seemed to pay off. Cracks steadily started to appear after each attack hit. Riddle was too weak to defend it while his magic was overwritten and could only look on in despair. The fire in the redhead’s right eye started to dim and when one final hit of Sora’s keyblade fractures the glass of the monster’s head, it sputtered out completely. Riddle was unable to support his weight anymore and fell on his hands and knees. Then, Riddle’s clothes turned back into ink and fell away from his body, revealing his dorm uniform underneath. Though, it had seen better days, smeared with ink as it was.

The monster let out one final screech, feeling the loss of its connection with the redhead. However, without that parasitic connection, it was unable to keep hold of his physical form. Its body rapidly fell apart, splattering everything in its vicinity with ink, until the monster was completely gone. 

Realizing that the fight was over, Sora threw caution to wind and hurried to the redhead. As he kneeled next to him he could hear him softly mutter to himself.

“I was…..wrong….? That’s not true…..Is it….? Mother…...don’t be mad….”

Worried for the other, Sora reached out his hand and touched the other’s arm, trying to offer some comfort. However, something strange happened. The keyblade wielder felt himself being pulled along in a swirling mess of colors and lights until his vision cleared. He was still kneeling before the redhead, but his surroundings had changed. They were in a large room in some sort of mansion. A young boy was sitting at a table with many thick books surrounding him. He looked to be hard at work. However, to Sora’s surprise everything, the boy included, was in black and white, not unlike his dreams. The only exceptions were the keyblade wielder himself and Riddle still on the ground next to him. 

Suddenly a woman entered the room, making the young boy look up at her approach.

“Congratulations on your eight birthday, Riddle. Your birthday cake this year is a low-sugar, high lecithin cake made with soy flour and nuts.” She said matter-of-factly. 

At the mention of his birthday cake, the boy had started to smile, but his smile lost a bit of his happiness as he heard the last part. “Thank you, mama.” He thanked the woman with a small voice, before he looked at her through his eyelashes. “Buy, uuumm, I….” He began sounding uncertain, before he seemingly gathered some courage. “Just once, I really want to try a tart covered in bright red strawberries….” He looked hopeful at his mother, but froze as he took in the thunderous look on her face. 

“How could you say such a thing! A pastry like that is a mound of sugar that’s more like poison. One slice would exceed your ideal daily intake of carbohydrates.” She admonished harshly before her tone turned sweet again. “Come now, this one is filled with docosahexaenoic acid and icosapentaenoic acid. It’s much healthier for you. Why would you eat that toxic monstrosity if you could eat something as healthy as this. Ah, but the recommended calorie intake for an 8-year old is….” She started to say as she looked away in thought. “….it’s only 600 kcal for one meal, so don’t eat more than 100 grams, understood?” When the boy didn’t immediately answered she leaned in closer to him. “Am I understood?” 

“…Yes, Mama….” He said so softly that Sora was almost unable to hear him, but it seemed to satisfy the woman as she smiled at her son.

“I’ve always wanted to eat tarts filled with red strawberries.” Riddle suddenly said from next to the brunette, reminding the other of his presence. He was looking sadly at the scene before them, like he was reliving the moment. Oh, so that little boy was a younger Riddle. Then that would mean that that horrid woman was Riddle’s mother. “Just like the one displayed on the shop window of the bakery that we always pass by.”

“That’s all for your lesson on classical magic today. Read the next 50 pages required for your next magic lessons tomorrow.” Riddle’s mother said. “Now then, you have one hour for yourself before your next lesson begins.”

“Yes, mother.”

“Mother has something to take care of for a while, so I will see you in one hour.” Riddle’s mother briskly left the room, without another glance at her son.

Riddle looked sadly at his younger self. “I was always surrounded by lessons I had to finish. If it was possible, my parents would have extended my lessons even longer. But, something like that was ‘normal’ for me, so I never objected.”

Sora wanted to reassure the other, to make sure that his mother wasn’t right, but a sudden loud knocking sound distracted him. Everyone in the room turned towards the closest window. 

“….Someone’s knocking on the window?” The younger Riddle muttered to himself as he slid of his chair and made his way towards the window and opened it. 

“Oh, he noticed us!” A familiar voice said from the other side of the window. 

“Hey, hey! Let’s play together!” Another familiar voice asked cheerfully. 

Curious to see who it was, Sora approached the window as well. Standing outside Riddle’s house were two boys who could only be a younger Trey and Che’nya.

“Who are you?” The younger Riddle asked the two. 

In reply, Che’nya grin grew ever larger. “I’m Che’nya! And this one’s Trey! Let’s play croquet together!” He said enthusiastically as he jumped in place. 

Riddle seemed unsure how to answer this. He was probably thinking about his mother’s instructions. Sora hoped that the redhead was going to disregard her rules and to play with them. 

“Eh….Th-that’s impossible….I’m doing self-study right now, so….” Riddle stuttered. He sounded like he didn’t believe the words and was only saying what was expected of him.

Even though they were rather young, both Trey and Che’nya seemed to pick up on his forced reluctance and smiled encouragingly at him. “Self-study? Grandad told me that what you want to study is up to you, so you can just do it whenever!” Che’nya said, while Trey nodded in agreement. 

“Won’t you come down just for a bit?” Trey tried to convince the redhead, which actually seemed to work. Riddle threw a worried look over his shoulder at the door his mother had left through earlier, before he looked at the duo before him again. Though he still seemed nervous, his mind looked made up. 

“…..I-if it’s only for a little while……I g-guess I can join you….” 

Trey and Che’nya shared a triumphant grin, before they beckoned Riddle to come with them. The redhead carefully climbed through the window, and joined them. Fortunately, the window wasn’t far off the ground, so even with his small size it went rather effortlessly. 

“Can I ask you for your name?” Trey asked when the redhead had joined them. 

“I-it’s Riddle…..Riddle Rosehearts.”

As Sora was about to follow the boys, the older Riddle suddenly spoke up. “Playing with Trey and Che’nya was very fun. We played a lot of games I didn’t know how to play. The both of them taught me a lot. During my one hour free time, I always snuck out of my room without my mother’s knowledge.” Riddle explained sounding wistful and their surroundings shifted abruptly. They were outside in what looked to be a town square. Before them, Sora could see the trio that had just left. However, they were all wearing different clothes this time, which probably means that this memory happened on a different day. 

“You’ve never eaten a strawberry tart, Riddle!?” Che’nya exclaimed sounding mortified at the thought as he grabbed the redhead’s arm dramatically. 

Riddle, who had lost his nervousness around the duo, looked away in embarrassment. “Yeah. Mother says it’s poison for the body, so I’m not allowed to eat them.”

“Well, of course it’s bad if you eat too much.” Trey reasoned. “Hey, I live in a bakery, so let’s go and have some right now!” He said and grabbed Riddle’s other hand and started to drag him along. Caught off guard, Riddle was dragged along by both boys, since Che’nya had grabbed his other hand. 

“E-eh? Ah, b-but….” Riddle tried to object weakly. 

“Just one slice will be fine.” Trey reassured him, which seemed to work.

“I wanna eat a whole one!” Chey’na added enthusiastically as he swung their joined hands in between them. 

“The bright red strawberry tart on top of that white plate….” The older Riddle said as he finally turned to meet Sora’s eyes. “To me, it looked more dazzling than any kind of jewel I’ve seen. The one bite I took was so sweet, and it was so delicious unlike anything I’ve ever tasted before…. I finished the entire slice the while savoring every bite. I lost track of time….” Riddle trailed off as their surroundings shifted once more. They were back in Riddle’s study room. Riddle’s mother looked furious at her son, who looked at his feet despondently.

“How could you! Not only did you skip your self-study, but you also ate something sugary!?” The woman shouted as she towered over the boy, whose only response was to further shrink into himself. “So those two tempted you into doing it? I shall never allow you to play with the both of them again! I should never have allowed it in the first place!”

With tears in his eyes, Riddle finally looked at his mother. “I’m sorry, mother! I’ll never do it again, so please forgive me….”

“Quiet!” The woman’s coldly furious tone immediately shut the boy up. “You will be punished, because you broke the rules.” She promised and a dangerous look crossed her face, before she turned around and made her way out of the room. As she left, they could still hear her mutter to herself. “Ah, I knew I shouldn’t have given him time for himself. He must be trained more to become perfect…..Now, what should his punishment be…..”

As soon as the door had fallen shut, the younger Riddle had fallen to his knees. Unable to suppress them anymore, tears were now freely falling from his eyes. Sora hurried over to the young boy and tried to comfort the boy, but his hands passed through the boy like he was a ghost….or more appropriately, like Sora was the ghost. In his need to comfort the crying child, the keyblade wielder had momentarily forgotten that they were reliving Riddle’s memories. Then, he looked up at the older Riddle, who was crying as well. Sora hurriedly got up from his position and approached the redhead. 

“I broke the rules, so even those fun times were taken away from me.” Riddle said sounding heartbroken. “That’s why I had to listen to every rule that mother said. Because my Mother will always be right. But, you know, mama….. I wonder why? For some reason, my heart feels so heavy….” 

After Riddle said this, Sora placed a hand on the other’s shoulder, reminding him that he wasn’t alone and offering him some comfort. In response, Riddle looked through his tears at Sora and leaned into the touch, prompting the brunette to hug the other. The redhead melted into the hug as his crying intensified. 

“She shouldn’t have treated you like that, Riddle. She wasn’t right and you should have been allowed to have fun. You were a child and should have been able to act like a child.”

“I-I know t-that now, you made me r-realize that. I don’t w-want to live by m-my mother’s rules anymore. I-I want to eat a lot of tarts even if it’s only on my birthday……I want to m-make lost more friends…. I want to make this s-sadness disappear…?” Riddle managed to get out in between hiccups. The redhead met Sora’s eyes. He looked so lost as he continued crying.

“You might not know how to overcome your sadness yet, but I’ll be there to help you.” 

“W-why would you do that for me after everything I’ve done…”

“Because we’re friends!...Or at least I would like to be.” Sora immediately replied, shocking the redhead. 

“I-I would like that as well.” Riddle answered and he smiled brightly at the brunette. For the first time since they had met, the redhead’s smile was genuine and unrestrained.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoyed this chapter. It was rather difficult to write the fight scenes, but in the end I think I'm satisfied with how it turned out.
> 
> Another part that had me struggle for a while was the dreamlike sequence with Riddle's memories in the end. I didn't really understand how it happened in the game, so I tried to give my own twist to it. 
> 
> So all in all this was a difficult chapter to write, but I'm happy with how it turned out. I hope you think so as well. Let me know how you liked this chapter!


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